Patterned textile product

ABSTRACT

A textile substrate is patterned by the selective application of various dyes to the substrate surface in a way that provides desirable, visually apparent enhancements in the area of pattern detail, definition, and color range, through the use of a novel patterning system, including the application of various chemical agents, that makes such enhancements possible. In one embodiment, the patterning system described herein is capable of producing pile-faced textile substrates, useful as floor coverings, that exhibit a unique combination of desirable pattern attributes that have been identified and measured using novel techniques specifically developed for these substrates and pattern attributes.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of co-pending U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 10/755,561, which was filed on Jan. 12, 2004, and which claimspriority to, and benefit of, U.S. Provisional Application No.60/440,056, filed Jan. 14, 2003, now expired, and U.S. ProvisionalApplication No. 60/454,565, filed Mar. 14, 2003, now expired, all of thedisclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

STATEMENT OF INVENTION

This disclosure is directed to a textile substrate that has beenpatterned by the selective application of various dyes to the substratesurface in a way that provides desirable, visually apparent enhancementsin the area of pattern detail, definition, and color range, and to thepatterning system that makes such enhancements possible. In oneembodiment, the patterning system described herein is capable ofproducing pile-faced textile substrates, useful as floor coverings, thatexhibit a unique combination of desirable pattern attributes that havebeen identified and measured using novel techniques specificallydeveloped for these substrates and pattern attributes.

BACKGROUND

This background discussion will be directed to the patterning of textilesubstrates having a pile surface, and, accordingly, for convenience,will use floor coverings as the source for specific examples. However,the techniques described herein are not limited to such surfaces, andare intended to apply, as appropriate, to other substrates comprised oftextile fibers that are woven, non-woven, knitted, bonded, or otherwiseentangled or attached to provide a cohesive, structurally integratedtextile.

With respect to colored textiles useful for floor coverings, thecoloring or patterning process can be thought of as belonging to one oftwo classes: processes that apply dye to the constituent yarns prior tosubstrate or pile surface formation (“yarn-dyed” processes), andprocesses that apply dye to the substrate after the substrate (and thepile surface) has been formed (“substrate-dyed” processes). For eachclass, it is possible to further distinguish the various dyed orpatterned textile products available in the market, and particularly,floor covering products. While the following discussion will refer tocarpet as representative of such products, it should be understood thatrugs, carpet tiles, mats, and other floor covering products are intendedto be included in the discussion as if specifically mentioned, unless acontrary intent is explicitly stated or is inherently appropriate.

Historically, dyed carpets were almost exclusively produced by variousyarn-dyed processes, in which the yarns were dyed the desired colorprior to a weaving or tufting operation in which the colored yarns wereformed into a carpet. At the present time, two processes appear dominantin the manufacture of yarn-dyed woven carpets: Wilton and Axminster. Inthe former case, a variety of colors may be used, but because the yarnis used in uncut form, all colors found in the pattern must betransported across the back of the carpet, regardless of the location orextent to which they are employed in the pattern. Accordingly, while arelatively high level of pattern detail and definition can be achieved,the number of colors that can be used within the pattern is limited bythe practical burdens associated with having to supply and accommodateeach color yarn at all times, regardless of its use within the pattern.An Axminster-woven carpet, on the other hand, uses cut yarns that areplaced within the weave. Using this technique, yarns of many colors maybe used, but pattern detail and definition are generally less than thatfound in Wilton-weave carpets. Of course, in either case, themanufacturing process is time consuming and costly.

Where tufted, rather than woven, carpets are produced, it is necessaryto hide yarns not required in the pattern at each location in order tomaintain the desired color at that location on the carpet. Becausehaving many colors available would require the hiding of a considerablenumber of yarns throughout the carpet, tufted carpets are capable ofexhibiting significant pattern detail and definition, but tend to belimited in terms of the number of colors that can be displayed.

More recently, carpet manufacturers have attempted to develop variousprocesses in which an undyed or uncolored substrate may be patternedthrough the application of dye to the substrate surface. Because suchprocesses generally allow use of a stock substrate that can be patternedquickly in accordance with customer demand, and thus provide significantmanufacturing economy and flexibility, carpet manufacturers havemaintained a strong interest in developing and improving such patterningprocesses.

Generally, such “substrate-dyed” processes have evolved along threedifferent approaches. In a first approach (the “drop-on-demand”approach), the dye or colorant is applied directly from valveapplicators positioned over the textile substrate to be patterned. In anexample of one such system, a valve is opened when the dye or colorantis to be dispensed onto the substrate, and is closed when the requisitequantity of dye has been delivered to the appropriate predetermined areaof the substrate.

In one configuration of such a device (referred to hereinafter as the“DOD” device), a print head containing a plurality of individual dyenozzles or applicators is traversed across the path of a substrate to bepatterned. A plurality of dye reservoirs are generally used, eachreservoir supplying dye of a respectively assigned color to one or morenozzles to provide for multi-color patterning. A given nozzle thereforedispenses dye of a pre-determined color, and only dye of that color(until the machine is reconfigured, the applicators cleaned, etc.), atone of several pre-set quantity levels affecting all colors, inaccordance with electronically-defined pattern data. Such data, in theform of “on-off” instructions, are directed to selected nozzles todispense dye of the various desired colors onto the substrate as theprint head is traversed across the width of the substrate and thesubstrate is sequentially indexed forward, thereby allowing the dyenozzles comprising the print head to trace a raster pattern across theface of the substrate and dispense dyes of the desired colors on anydesired area of the substrate dictated by the selected pattern.

This traversing motion is believed to have two consequences affectingthe machine's ability to create a precisely formed line in a directionparallel to conveyor motion. The first involves the possibility that thetraversing motion across the width of the substrate to be patternedintroduces a velocity component in the cross-conveyor direction that mayresult in an elongation of the dispensed drops in the direction of thetraversal. The second involves the fact that creation of such a lineinvolves the ability to actuate and de-actuate the dye dispenser at theexact time necessary to form a series of pixels that are in precisealignment as the dispenser is moving perpendicular to the line beingformed. Perhaps because of one or both of these possible effects, thepattern features produced by this type of DOD device are known to besignificantly anisotropic (i.e., direction-sensitive).

In a second approach (the “recirculating” or “RECIRC” approach), theindividual dye applicators are also associated only with a given color,and the applicators also may be arranged in rows, perhaps in a series ofparallel rows arranged in spaced relation along the path of the movingsubstrate. However, rather than dispensing dye only when required by thepattern, the applicators in this re-circulating approach are always “on”and continuously generate a stream of dye that is directed towards thesurface of the moving substrate, but that stream is normally divertedinto a catch basin associated with each row by individual streams of acontrol fluid (e.g., air). Actuation or de-actuation of such applicatorsinvolves, respectively, de-actuation or actuation of the correspondingcontrol fluid. Accordingly, the dye stream can reach the substrate onlywhen it is not diverted onto the catch basin by theintermittently-actuated (i.e., actuated in accordance with pattern data)transverse stream of air or other control fluid for a time intervalsufficient to dispense the quantity of dye (which may vary considerablyfrom color to color) specified by the electronically defined patterndata. Separate sets of applicators and corresponding catch basins areused so that dye that is directed into a specific catch basin can becollected and re-circulated to the row of dye applicators assigned tothat color dye. Some details of such a device are discussed below, aswell as in a number of U.S. Patents, including commonly-assigned U.S.Pat. Nos. 4,116,626, 5,136,520, 5,142,481, and 5,208,592, the teachingsof which are hereby incorporated by reference.

In the RECIRC devices and techniques described in the above-referencedU.S. patents, the substrate pattern is defined in terms of pixels, andindividual colorants or combinations of colorants are assigned to eachpixel in order to impart the desired color to that corresponding pixelon the substrate. The application of such colorants to specific pixelsis achieved through the use of many individual dye applicators, mountedalong the length of the various color bars that are positioned inspaced, parallel relation across the path of the moving substrate to bepatterned. Each applicator in a given color bar is supplied withcolorant from the same colorant reservoir, with different color barsbeing supplied from different reservoirs, typically containing differentcolorants. By generating applicator actuation instructions thataccommodate the fixed position of the applicator along the length of thecolor bar as well as the position of the color bar relative to theposition of the target pixel on the moving substrate, any availablecolorant from any color bar may be applied to any pixel within thepattern area on the substrate, as may be required by the specificpattern being reproduced. As will be appreciated by those skilled in theart, compensation for substrate travel time between rows must beprovided.

Although patterning systems employing this RECIRC design have beensuccessful, those familiar with such systems are aware of severalconsequences of the fundamental design that have to be accommodated forbest results. These consequences arise as a result of the dye streambeing formed continuously rather than as demanded by the pattern. Thisdesign feature results in a dye stream that (1) must be deflected ontothe substrate in accordance with pattern data, and (2) must, at othertimes, be recirculated in order to minimize the consumption of expensivedyes.

The first design consequence (i.e. the deflection of the dye stream)results in the dye stream being subject to both a slight velocitycomponent as well as certain fluid mechanical effects as the dye streamis first allowed to strike the substrate and then, as dictated bypattern data, is re-deflected into the catch basin. These effects, whichcan have a subtle, but perceptible effect on pattern definition in theform of a slightly elongated drop footprint along the axis of deflection(which also corresponds to the axis of conveyor motion) that would notbe present if the dye stream were simply dispensed from an overheadapplicator in “on/off” fashion.

Additionally, because control of the dye stream is indirect in the sensethat it depends upon the control imposed on and by the transverse streamof deflecting fluid, this design sets inherent limitations on theminimum quantity of dye that can be accurately and reliably delivered toa specific pixel.

Similar to the issue discussed in connection with the DOD device, above,there is also the fact that the formation of a line that is parallel tothe direction of substrate movement involves the ability to deflect thedispensed dye stream(s) at the exact time necessary to form a series ofpixels that are in precise alignment as the applicator dispenser ismoving perpendicular to the line being formed. Perhaps because of one orboth of these possible effects, the pattern features produced by theRECIRC device are also known to be significantly anisotropic (i.e.,direction-sensitive).

The second design consequence (i.e., the recirculation of the dye whennot patterning) results in a limitation as to the chemical agents thatcan be added to the dye—the inclusion of surfactants, shear-sensitivethickening agents, etc. to the dye, for example, can result inundesirable behavior of the dye as it recirculates. An additionalconsequence of the re-circulation system is the need to incline thesystem to promote gravity-assisted draining of the catch basin. Thatinclination tends to cause freshly deposited dye to flow down theinclined substrate and can result in the occurrence of non-circular dyedrops. Perhaps most fundamentally, these two designconsequences—particularly the second—do not accommodate the use of highviscosity dyes, which traditionally are the dyes of choice for highdefinition patterning of textile substrates because of their reducedtendency to spread uncontrollably when applied, as compared with lowerviscosity dyes of the same kind.

In a third approach (the “screen print” approach), a series of screens(typically, one per color) comprised of individual relatively fine-gaugemeshes are placed, sequentially and in registration with precedingscreens, directly over the area of the substrate to be patterned. Withineach screen are locations where the screen mesh is occluded or blocked,so that when dye is applied to one side of the screen, it passes throughand colors the substrate everywhere except at those locations.

Screen printing, while capable of a high degree of detail anddefinition, nevertheless has a process “signature” which tends tocharacterize textile substrates that have been patterned using thisprocess. The physical dimensions of the screens themselves usuallydefine, and limit, the size of the pattern repeat. Typically, the screenis placed into direct contact with the surface of the substrate beingpatterned. This not only can deform the face fibers, but also limits thesuccess with which substrates having contoured or otherwise uneven topsurfaces (e.g., non-level loop carpets) can be patterned. Due to thisphysical interaction with, and occasional displacement of, the surfacefibers, as well as the difficulties associated with achieving closeregistration tolerances when dealing with the precise positioning of aseries of large screens on a deformable surface having a high degree oftexture, screen printing procedures normally provide for significantoverlap (and, therefore, significant overprinting) between adjacentscreen placements, to assure that no substrate within the boundaryregions between adjacent screen positions will be underdyed. The visualconsequences of this overprinting are frequently apparent.

Perhaps the most characteristic quality of screen printed products isthe physical depth of the resulting dyed pattern. In order to provideadequate control of the placement of the dye as it is pressed throughthe screen, the dyes used tend to be high viscosity. The use of highviscosity dye allows for high definition images—such dyes are notnormally prone to migrate, and minimizing lateral dye migration on thesubstrate tends to sharpen the dye boundaries on the substrate. However,minimizing lateral dye migration also tends to impede vertical (i.e.,along the fiber) dye migration into the pile, which means that, althoughscreen dyed products may appear rather detailed, they generally will notexhibit a high degree of dye penetration—dyed yarns in pattern regionswill be completely dyed over perhaps the first 30 or 40 percent of theirlength (depending upon the composition and total overall length of thefibers comprising the pile face), beyond which dye penetration isusually quite non-uniform and frequently non-existent.

In summary, the carpet patterning systems of the prior art collectivelysuffer from several important shortcomings, including an inability toprovide a product with high pattern definition or resolution that can beeasily patterned from an unlimited number of unpatterned stocksubstrates, and that exhibits a wide variety of visually uniform colors(including in situ blended colors) that extend deep within the substrateface.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

To address these shortcomings, a fourth system, of the drop-on-demandtype, has now been developed. This system, referred to as the PREF(“PREFerred”) system, provides many of the collective advantages ofvarious yarn-dyed systems, notably, sharply defined pattern edges, ahigh level of pattern detail, and an ability to incorporate a largenumber of colors within the pattern, with the collective advantages ofvarious substrate-dyed systems, notably, speed and flexibility ofpatterning, an ability to use standard, un-dyed stock substrates asstarting materials, and an ability to produce a variety of blendedcolors on the substrate from a limited number of process colorants. Asdescribed, this PREF system produces patterned products that possess adegree of definition and contrast that are unrivalled by the productsproduced by other known textile pattern dyeing systems.

This novel system provides a series of fixed arrays of individuallyactuated dye dispensers or applicators, each of which is positioned overand directed towards the moving substrate web to be patterned. In itsmost straightforward embodiment, all applicators associated with a givenarray are supplied with a common dye. When actuated, the applicatorsdeliver to the substrate surface that quantity of dye specified by thepattern being reproduced, with an accuracy and a precision that has beenpreviously unattainable by other drop-on-demand, recirculating, orscreen printing systems, and with the capability of delivering dyequantities sufficiently large to achieve desirable dye penetration, aswell as sufficiently small to achieve unprecedented in situ dye blendingcapability, and the ability to dye low face weight textiles without dyeflooding.

As will be discussed in more detail below, the product produced by thisunique PREF patterning system has been shown to be also unique in waysthat are both visually apparent and scientifically measurable. Specificattributes of such products include a significant reduction in thedistance necessary to transition from one color to a second color at apattern area border, as well as a significant reduction in the minimumpattern element size that can be accurately and precisely rendered onthe substrate, together with excellent dye penetration.

Several operational advantages can be obtained through the use of thisPREF patterning system, particularly as compared with there-circulation-type (“RECIRC”) system discussed above. Because the PREFsystem does not depend upon the constant re-circulation of dye,limitations on dye viscosity and use of surfactants or anti-foamingagents are no longer necessary. Limitations with respect to machineconfiguration are also relaxed, in that there is no longer a need toaccommodate a re-circulation system, complete with a separate catchbasin for each dye used, which allows for more compact placement of thenon-re-circulation-type color bars, thereby reducing the physicaldistance between adjacent color bars and removing the need to inclinethe patterning system to promote gravity-assisted draining of the catchbasins. Furthermore, the geometry of dye stream formation and deliveryfound in the PREF system disclosed herein is sufficiently different thatthe “footprint” of the dye drop as it strikes the substrate isfundamentally changed—it is substantially circular in shape, rather thanhaving a perceptible oblate appearance for the reasons discussed above.

In addition, because of the ability to use dyes that have a relativelyhigh viscosity, there is an additional mechanism that is believed tocontribute to the high definition patterning performance of this PREFsystem. As it strikes the substrate surface, the drop of high viscositydye is given an opportunity to form a sphere-like shape prior to beingabsorbed by the substrate. As a result of this mechanism, the“footprint” of the dye drop (i.e., its lateral dimension in the plane ofthe substrate surface) tends to be minimized as it is first deposited onthe substrate, before being fully absorbed. Consequently, the footprintwithin which the dye drop is ultimately absorbed may be reduced and, inturn, the perceived pattern resolution in that area may be increased(provided subsequent lateral dye migration can be controlled).

Perhaps most importantly in terms of combining high resolutionpatterning with the technologically opposing ability to create a widerange of available colors from a given set of process colors through insitu blending techniques, the nature of the valves and theirconfiguration within the PREF patterning system allow for dramaticallyimproved “turn-down” response. This ability provides for theapplication, with accuracy and precision, of much lower quantities ofdye from individual dye applicators than was previously possible withstate-of-the-art devices of the re-circulation type. This capabilityalso provides an ability to pattern low face weight textile substrateswithout dye flooding.

This improved ability to dispense, with accuracy and precision,relatively small quantities of dye allows for the creation of highlylocalized dye blends on the substrate that require a relatively smallproportion of a given dye. In the past, the creation of such blendedcolors may have required the construction of a relatively largemulti-pixel structure (e.g., a superpixel) and an attendant increase inthe possibility of increased heather (i.e., non-uniform color orhalf-tone artifacts), in order to achieve the proper ratio of theconstituent dyes. With the turn-down response available with the novelpatterning system disclosed herein, such blended colors may beconstructed using fewer pixels, or perhaps only a single pixel, therebyenhancing the pattern definition possible when using such blendedcolors.

In summary, the PREF patterning system comprises an improved system forpatterning textile substrates using a plurality ofindividually-controlled dye applicators that selectively apply, inaccordance with color and applicator-specific actuation commands, apattern-determined quantity of dye onto the substrate surface. Productsproduced using this novel system can be expected to have a high degreeof pattern detail and definition, sharp borders surrounding each patternelement, an enhanced ability to blend various process colors on thesubstrate to form a large palette of available colors for use within thepattern, and excellent dye penetration within the substrate. Thesedesirable capabilities previously have not been available in combinationin a single substrate-dye system, and consequently the products of thissystem similarly have been previously unavailable.

To facilitate the discussions below, the following definitions shall beused, unless otherwise indicated or demanded by context. In each case,terms derived from the defined term shall have that meaning consistentwith the given definition. Other definitions may be presented, asappropriate, throughout.

The term “substrate” shall mean any substantially flat, absorbenttextile comprised of individual natural or man-made yarns or fibers (asused herein, yarns shall be used as a collective term to include bothyarns and fibers, whether or not such fibers are components of yarns,unless otherwise specified or dictated by context). Substrates for whichthe processes described herein are particularly suited include pilefabrics and floor coverings, including carpets, rugs, carpet tiles, andfloor mats. However, the teachings herein are fully applicable to thepatterning of fabrics such as interior design fabrics (e.g., drapes,napery, upholstery fabrics, wall hanging fabrics, etc.), apparelfabrics, and other fabrics, and are intended to include textiles thatare woven, knitted, entangled, bonded, tufted, or otherwise providedwith the means to maintain structural integrity.

The term “absorbent” shall mean having the ability to accommodate andretain a liquid coloring agent by the constituent fibers or yarns, or bythe interstices formed by adjacent fibers or yarns.

The term “patterning” shall mean the selective application of dye, inaccordance with predetermined data, to specified areas of a substrate.

The term “pattern configuration,” when used to indicate the placement ofdyes or chemicals on a substrate, shall mean placement in accordancewith a predetermined pattern that is to be reproduced. One example ofplacement in pattern configuration is placement in registry with thevarious colored areas comprising the pattern. However, placement inpattern configuration may also merely refer to placement in relation tocertain pattern elements, where such placement may not necessarily be inregistry with those pattern elements (as would occur if, for example, achemical agent were applied in an irregularly-shaped area situated apre-determined distance away from the edge of a pattern element) inorder to achieve one or more special effects.

The term “pattern applied,” as used to describe a dye or color on asubstrate, shall mean that dye or color that is or was applied to thesubstrate in a pattern configuration.

The term “pixel” shall be used to describe the basis on which patternsare defined and, for at least some of the substrate patterning devicesdiscussed herein, the basis for generating the dye applicator actuationcommands required to reproduce those patterns. The derived termpixel-wise is used to describe the assignment or application of dye orother liquid to specific pixel-sized locations on the substrate, forexample, as would occur in reproducing a pattern or pattern elementdefined in terms of pixels, but could also apply, in analogous fashion,to systems in which the pattern is not, strictly speaking, defined interms of pixels.

The term “dye” shall mean, unless otherwise specified, a liquidcontaining various components that form a solution for dyeing a textilesubstrate, including one or more dyes or colorants (of any suitablekind) in a carrier and, optionally, other additives such as may betaught herein, that is applied to the substrate as part of thepatterning process.

The term “dye migration” shall include the movement of any part of thedye solution in one pattern area on a substrate to a second, adjacentpattern area on the substrate in a manner that can change (e.g., bydyeing or diluting) the color of the second pattern area.

The term “process color” shall mean the color of a dye or colorant as itis applied to the substrate, prior to any mixing or blending with anyother dye or colorant on the substrate. The process colors are the setof colors dispensed by the patterning device from which all other colorsto be generated on the substrate must be comprised.

The term “in situ blending” shall refer to the migration and mixing ofdye after the dye has been applied to the substrate. In one example, dyeof the same color is applied to adjacent pixels, and the migration ofdye between adjacent pixels tends to promote a more uniform appearancewithin the dyed area of the substrate. In another example, dyes of twoor more colors are applied to the same pixel, and the blending occursprimarily within the same pixel (and, to a lesser extent, in adjacentpixels due to the degree to which lateral migration of the dye takesplace). In a third example, dyes of different colors are applied toadjacent pixels, with pixel-to-pixel migration taking place thateffectively blends, to a greater or lesser extent, the various applieddyes to form a composite color. Of course, various combinations of theabove (e.g., having multiple dyes applied to each of two or moreadjacent pixels, with pixel-to-pixel migration taking place) arepossible and may be advantageous under certain conditions.

The term “level” or “heather” shall be used to describe the degree towhich a given area of the substrate exhibits visually uniform color.Dyed areas having poor level or high heather exhibit a mottled orsplotchy appearance and, in cases where in situ color blending has beenattempted, individual pixel-to-pixel color variations may be visuallyapparent. Such variations may or may not be welcome.

The terms “definition” or “high definition,” as applied to a dye patternas seen on a substrate, shall mean a pattern that exhibits excellentdetail, with pattern elements that are rendered with exceptionalclarity, visual contrast, and well-defined edges.

The term “boundary region” shall mean that area serving as the borderbetween a first pattern area of a first color and a contiguous secondpattern area of a second color. The boundary region includes allmeasurable gradations of color that appear in the transition from the“pure” first color to the “pure” second color (or vice versa) along apath representing the shortest distance between the two pattern areas ata specified location along their common border. One edge of the boundaryregion coincides with the location along the path at which the firstcolor begins to be measurably influenced by the migration of dye fromthe second pattern area, and the other edge of the boundary regioncoincides with the location along the path at which the second colorbegins to be measurably influenced by the migration of dye from thefirst area. Boundary regions contain individual yarns, fibers, or pileelements that contain pattern-applied dyes from both bordering patternareas.

The term “Transition Width” is a distance, useful in characterizing agiven boundary region between two contiguous pattern areas, that iscalculated using the techniques disclosed herein. Conceptually, theTransition Width may be thought of as a mathematically derived valuethat defines endpoints that may be used in place of (and that fallwithin) the actual leading and trailing edges defining the boundaryregion. These mathematically-derived endpoints are believed to be wellsuited for reliably characterizing the degree of abruptness of the colortransition between the two contiguous pattern areas.

The term “Feature Width” shall mean the width of a pattern element, asmeasured across the shortest dimension of the pattern element inaccordance with the procedures defined herein. Conceptually, minimumFeature Width may be thought of as inversely correlated with maximumprint gauge, in that it is a measure of the smallest pattern featurethat can be reliably positioned and reproduced on the substrate.

The term “semi-infinite,” as used in connection with Transition Widthsand Feature Widths, refers to the width of the pattern area borderingthe boundary region of interest. A “semi-infinite” area is one having asufficient width that dye migrating across its boundary regions fromadjacent pattern areas can be assumed to have no influence on the colorof the interior of the semi-infinite pattern area. That sufficient widthis assumed to be three pixels. Accordingly, features widths three pixelsor larger are considered “semi-infinite” in width, for purposes ofanalysis herein. Since this definition implies that the mid-point of asemi-infinite pattern area is sufficiently distant from a boundaryregion to avoid any physical influence (from dye migration) from anyadjacent pattern areas, the choice of semi-infinite feature size mayneed to be adjusted as necessary.

The term “dominant boundary color” shall mean one of a pair ofcontiguous colors that, by virtue of its colorimetric nature, tends todominate visually the second color within their common boundary region.For example, the boundary region associated with a darker color (i.e.,one having a relatively low L* value, as defined by CIELAB) that iscontiguous with a lighter color (i.e., one having a relatively higher L*value, as defined by CIELAB) is likely to be visually dominated by theedge of the darker color, rather than by the edge of the lighter color.Notable exceptions to this general rule are certain higher-intensityshades of yellow, which may behave as dominant colors in spite of arelatively high L* value.

The term “dye penetration,” as applied to textile substrates having apile or pile-like surface, shall mean the extent to which the dyeapplied to the surface of the substrate in a pattern configuration hasmigrated along the length of the yarns or textile fibers (“pileelements”) comprising the pile in the general direction of the substrateback (usually, the point of attachment of the pile elements to thesubstrate back) and dyed such pile elements in a substantially uniformmanner. By way of example only, for substrates having generallyupstanding pile elements, dye penetration is the distance thepattern-applied dye has traveled along the length of the individual pileelements, and effectively uniformly dyed those pile elements without theappearance of streaks, bands, striations, significant changes of hue(e.g., due to reduced dye concentration or chromatographic effects), orother signs of incomplete, non-uniform dyeing along the length of thepile element. Substrates that show relatively shallow dye penetrationmay show complete dyeing near the surface of the undisturbed substrate,but show incompletely dyed pile elements (with respect to thepattern-applied dye) when the pile surface is brushed or parted.

The term “frostiness” is used to describe a deficiency of dye at thetips of pile yarns that otherwise show at least some dye penetration,giving the dyed surface of the substrate a light or hazy appearance.

The term “wet pickup” is used to describe the volume of dye applied tothe surface of the substrate, expressed in convenient units (e.g.,grams/cm²).

The term “effective drop diameter” shall mean the diameter of ahypothetical spherical drop of dye that, if centrally placed in eachpixel of a patterned area of a substrate, results in a given wet pickup.

The term “metered jet,” as used to describe a substrate patterningprocess, shall mean any process for dyeing textiles in which multiple,discretely formed streams of flowable dye are applied to the substratesurface in accordance with pattern data by the selective actuation andde-actuation of individual dye applicators that dispense dye, usually inpixel-wise fashion, from conduits positioned opposite the substrateareas being patterned.

The term “effective print gauge” shall mean the actual resolution withwhich a pattern can be rendered on a substrate by a metered jetpatterning device; it is equivalent to the maximum number of individualpixels per unit length to which a specific color can be effectively andreliably visually resolved.

The term “line profile” shall mean the variation of print colormeasurements (e.g., CIELAB values, or their spatial derivatives),averaged over a suitable number of paths that are perpendicular to, andcross, boundary regions between pattern areas of different colors.

The term “color signal” shall mean that signal in the output of ascanner digitizing a textile substrate that characterizes the color ofthe substrate surface.

The term “substrate noise” shall mean that signal in the output of ascanner digitizing a textile substrate, superimposed on a color signal,that is due to the topology of the substrate surface and its attendanthighlights and shadows. Such effects are particularly apparent on a pilesubstrate surface, and more particularly on a pile substrate surfacewith relatively long pile elements or irregular pile lay.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The following discussion is intended to be read in conjunction with theFigures, briefly described below.

FIG. 1 is a schematic top view representation of the front end of anexemplary patterning range including an exemplary PREF patterning devicefor producing the products described herein;

FIG. 1A is a schematic top view representation of an alternative frontend of an exemplary patterning range like that of FIG. 1.

FIG. 2 is a schematic top view representation of the mid-section of thepatterning range of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic top view representation of the back end of thepatterning device of FIGS. 1 and 1A;

FIG. 4 is a schematic plan view representation of the PREF patterningdevice of FIGS. 1 and 1A;

FIG. 5 is a side view illustration of the PREF drop-on-demand or directjet patterning device or apparatus in accordance with an exemplaryembodiment;

FIG. 6 is an end view illustration of the PREF patterning device of FIG.5;

FIG. 7 is a cross-section representation of one section of the PREFpatterning apparatus of FIGS. 5 and 6 in accordance with a firstembodiment thereof;

FIG. 8 is a cross-section illustration of one section of the PREFpatterning device of FIGS. 5 and 6 in accordance with a secondembodiment thereof;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view illustration of an exemplary all inclusivevalve card;

FIG. 10 is a bottom view representation of a plurality of the valvecards of FIG. 9 arranged adjacent one another as they would be in avalve card set or valve card array in the PREF patterning device ofFIGS. 5 and 6;

FIG. 11 is a bottom view representation of a portion of two adjacentsets or arrays of valve cards with the jets of each of the adjacentvalve card sets being aligned with one another;

FIG. 11A is an enlarged view of a portion of the jets of two of thevalve cards of FIG. 11 showing that the jets of a first valve card and asecond or trailing valve card in the direction of travel of thesubstrate are aligned with one another;

FIG. 12 is a bottom view representation of a plurality of valve cards inaccordance with an alternative exemplary embodiment, aligned as theywould be in a valve card set or array in a PREF apparatus like thatshown in FIGS. 5 and 6;

FIG. 13 is a bottom view illustration of a portion of two valve cardsets or arrays of the valve cards of FIG. 12 arranged with the jetsbeing off-set from one another;

FIG. 13A is an enlarged representation of a portion of the jets of twoof the valve cards of FIG. 13 showing that the valve cards are offset byhalf the distance between the jets so that the trailing valve card hasjets offset from the leading valve card;

FIG. 14 is a somewhat schematic cross-section illustration of a valve,jet, and tubing arrangement (individually controlled dye applicator ordispenser) in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 15 is an enlarged cross-section illustration of a portion of thevalve of FIG. 14;

FIG. 16 is an enlarged cross-section illustration of a portion of thejet of FIG. 14;

FIG. 17 is a top view representation of a portion of the base plate ofthe valve card section of FIG. 7;

FIG. 18 is a top view representation of a portion of the base plate ofthe valve card section of FIG. 8;

FIG. 19 is a schematic representation of an exemplary embodiment of apressurized fluid tank for feeding dye and/or chemicals to a fluidconduit which feeds a plurality of valve cards in one or more valve cardsets or arrays;

FIG. 20 is a schematic representation of a selectable multiple dye orchemical supply which feeds a particular fluid conduit for a pluralityof valve cards in a particular valve card set or array;

FIG. 21 is a schematic representation of a selectable multiple dye orchemical supply to a plurality of valve cards in accordance with stillyet another exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 22 is a block diagram disclosing, in overview, an electroniccontrol system suitable for use in operating the PREF patterning deviceof FIGS. 1-21;

FIGS. 23A and 23B are diagrammatic representations of the “stagger”memory disclosed in FIG. 22. FIG. 23A depicts a memory state at a timeT₁; FIG. 23B depicts a memory state at time T₂, exactly one hundredpattern lines later;

FIG. 24 is a block diagram describing the “gatling” memory described inFIG. 22;

FIG. 25 schematically depicts the format of the pattern data at variousdata processing stages of the present invention as indicated in FIGS. 22through 24;

FIG. 26 is a diagram showing an optional “jet tuning” function which maybe associated with each array, as described herein;

FIG. 27 is a block diagram disclosing, an overview, the novel contiguousvalve control system disclosed herein;

FIG. 28 is a diagram of a clock voltage pulse, shift data in voltagepulse, high voltage pulse, block voltage pulse, and valve drive voltagepulse that represents when a valve that is turned on from the previousmachine cycle;

FIG. 29 is a diagram of clock voltage pulse, shift data in voltagepulse, high voltage pulse, block voltage pulse, valve drive voltagepulse, corresponding to FIG. 28 that represents a valve that was notturned on in the previous machine cycle.

FIG. 30 schematically depicts plan view of a patterning device showingblock colored areas of the substrate.

FIG. 31 is an exploded schematic view of an exemplary multi-layeredcarpet construction;

FIG. 32 is a simplified process flow diagram for dye application andfixation of dye within a carpet pile;

FIG. 33 is an expanded flow diagram illustrating a sequence of steps inthe preparation of a carpet including the application and fixation ofdye to the pile surface;

FIG. 34 illustrates a fringe-field radio frequency application unitincluding a plurality of electrodes extending across the travel path ofa carpet tile for application of a drying electric field;

FIG. 35 is an exploded side view similar to FIG. 31 illustrating the RFfield applied to a substantially controlled depth within the carpetstructure;

FIG. 36 is a graph illustrating improved dyeing using RF preheat;

FIG. 37 is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary process for formationof a broadloom carpet which may incorporate patterned printing and/or RFpreheating;

FIG. 38 is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary process for formationof a carpet tile product which may incorporate patterned printing and/orRF preheating; and

FIG. 39 is a flow chart illustrating another exemplary process forformation of a carpet tile product which may incorporate patternedprinting and/or RF preheating;

FIG. 40 is a perspective view of a carpet tile with a pattern suitablefor performing the analyses taught herein;

FIGS. 41A and 41B systematically depict performance of a dye drop on acut pile surface;

FIGS. 42A and 42B systematically depict performance of a dye drop on aloop pile surface;

FIG. 43 is a flow chart describing an overview of the steps fordetermining transition width;

FIG. 44 is a flow chart depicting a series of steps for scannerinstrument calibration;

FIG. 45 depicts a color signal that is superimposed with substratenoise;

FIG. 46 is an overview of a calculation used in finding TransitionWidths;

FIG. 46A is a diagram similar to FIG. 46 but directed to determiningFeature Widths;

FIGS. 47A through 47C comprises of a flow chart describing steps forperforming image analysis of boundary regions;

FIG. 48 depicts an idealized boundary region between two pattern areasand its associated mathematical models;

FIG. 49 is a diagram similar to that of FIG. 48, but depicting adiffused boundary region between two pattern areas;

FIG. 50 is a diagram similar to that of FIG. 49, but depicts a sharp,meandering boundary region;

FIG. 51 is similar to FIGS. 49 and 50, but depicts a boundary region inwhich color blending has resulted in the formation of a third color inthe boundary region;

FIG. 52 schematically depicts process steps involved in determining theFeature Width for a feature having relatively straight but diffusedboundary regions;

FIG. 53 is a diagram similar to that of FIG. 52, but depicts a featurehaving meandering but relatively sharp boundary regions;

FIG. 54A depicts irregular and relatively shallow dye penetration in acut pile substrate;

FIG. 54B depicts substantially deeper and more uniform dye penetrationin a cut pile substrate; and

FIGS. 55 through 255 depict, in various formats, experimental datacollected in the course of conducting the analyses described herein.

APPARATUS DETAILED DESCRIPTION

For purposes of discussion, the apparatus of FIGS. 1-21 of the drawingswill be described in conjunction with the metered jet patterningapparatus control system described below and to which the apparatus isparticularly well suited. It should be understood, however, that thebelow described electronic control system of the present invention maybe used, perhaps with obvious modifications, in other devices wheresimilar quantities of digitized data must be rapidly distributed to alarge number of individual elements.

Also for purposes of discussion, the apparatus described in FIGS. 1-21of the drawings will be described in conjunction with the patternedtextile products described below. The apparatus of FIGS. 1-21 of thedrawings are particularly well suited to produce such products. Itshould be understood, however, that the apparatus of the presentinvention may be used, perhaps with obvious modification, to produceother products.

In accordance with at least one potentially preferred embodiment of thepresent invention and with reference to FIGS. 1-21 of the drawings, adrop-on-demand or direct jet textile patterning machine or device forpixel specific or pixel-wise dye application, chemical application,and/or the like is provided. The direct jet dyeing apparatus or textilepatterning machine provides for not only the pixel specific dyeapplication of individual colorants, but also combinations of colors,chemical agents, and the like to create not only conventional patterns,designs, colors, and effects, but also unique and previously unknownpatterns, designs, effects, and the like.

Although the direct jet dyeing or patterning apparatus or machine of thepresent invention may be utilized to dye or pattern broadloomsubstrates, area rugs, floor mats, carpet tiles, runners or the like,FIGS. 1-3 are directed to a particular patterning range or dye rangeembodiment for dyeing or producing discrete carpet tiles. It is easy toenvision that one could use a similar apparatus for patterning broadloomproducts. U.S. Pat. No. 3,894,413 discloses the dyeing of carpet tiles,while U.S. Pat. No. 6,120,560 discloses the dyeing of broadloomsubstrate, each hereby incorporated by reference.

With reference to the particular example of FIGS. 1-3 of the drawings, adye range or production line for the dyeing or patterning, preferably ina pixel wise fashion, of a textile substrate includes at the front end arobotic depalletizing or singulating station 250 for receiving palletsof stacked carpet tiles or blanks 252, automatically removing singletiles from the stack on a pallet, and placing the singulated tiles on aconveyor 253 which conveys each tile or blank 252 through a pretreatstation 256. In the pretreat station, the tiles may be subjected tosteam, wet out, water, or the like. The pretreatment of a substrateprior to dyeing is described, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,740,214and 4,808,191 hereby incorporated by reference herein.

Following pretreatment (if any), each tile or blank 252 passes to anexemplary PREF patterning device or direct jet dyeing or patterningmachine 254 including a conveyor mechanism 310 which has respectiveslats or dividers 320 which insure that each tile is in a specifiedlocation on the conveyor and is transported through the patterningdevice or machine 254 in an accurate fashion to provide for dyeingpatterns, designs, colors and/or the like on each tile in a particularplacement or location on each tile and to provide for accurateregistration of designs, patterns, colors, or the like on adjacent tileswhen the carpet tiles are installed at a location. The more accurate theplacement of the tiles through the PREF patterning device 254, the moreaccurate the registration of the resultant designs on adjacent tiles.

The PREF patterning device or machine 254 in FIG. 1 is shown locatedadjacent thirty two dye or chemical tanks 260 which feed dye orchemicals to thirty two respective valve card sets or arrays as will bedescribed in more detail below. Each of the dye or chemical tanks 260preferably receives a selected dye solution or chemical agent fromeither a mixing tank, a surge tank, a storage tank, mixing equipment, orthe like. Also, it is preferred that each of the dye or chemical tanks260 delivers the dye or chemical agent to the valve card set underpressure, more preferably, at a substantially constant pressure, forexample of about 10-35 psi, more preferably about 20-30 psi, mostpreferably about 30 psi.

With reference to FIG. 1, the dyed or printed carpet tiles exit the PREFpatterning device or machine 254 and are transferred to a conveyorsystem or transfer table 264 which converts the tiles from a single filearrangement to a three-wide arrangement upstream of a preheat or presetstation 266. For example, the preheat or preset station is an RF unitwhich heats at least the top surface of each tile to a temperature ofabout 190° F. in order to preheat or preset the dye on the yarn prior toentrance into a first steam section 268. This preheat or preset of thedye may not only provide for better resolution, less bleeding, bettercolor, or the like, but may also reduce condensation on the top of thecarpet tile when it enters into the steamer section 268.

With reference to FIG. 1A and in accordance with an alternativeembodiment, the dyed tiles or substrates 252 pass from the PREFpatterning device 254 on to a single wide preheat station 266 beforepassing to the transfer conveyor or table 264 which converts the tilesfrom a single wide arrangement to a triple wide arrangement. Hence, thepreheat station 266 of FIG. 2 is narrower than that of FIG. 1. AlthoughFIGS. 1-3 show tiles being conveyed triple wide through a large portionof the range, it is contemplated that the range may be arrange to conveytiles single wide, double wide, triple wide, or the like.

With reference to FIG. 2, the tiles are conveyed triple wide through thefirst steamer section 268 to a first treatment station 270 and then intoa second steamer section 272. Following the second steamer section 272,the tiles are conveyed triple wide into a wash and treat station 274, avacuum station 276, a nip roll station 278, and through an additionaltreatment station 280 upstream of a dryer section 282. At the entranceand exit of each of the steamer sections 268, 272 is a steam hood 269.

With reference to FIG. 3, the dryer section 282, for example, aconventional forced air dryer or oven, is followed by a post dry section284, such as an RF device. The tiles are further conveyed triple widethrough a cooling section 286, for example, a cool air or refrigerationunit and then travel on to a singulating device 288 which converts thetiles back to a single tile line or arrangement.

Next, the carpet tiles 252 are conveyed along a first conveyor 290 to afirst edge trim station 292 which simultaneously trims two oppositeedges of each tile. Thereafter, the tiles enter a second conveyor 294such as a roller conveyor, which conveys the tiles through a second edgetrimming station 296 which trims the other two edges of each tile. Afteredge trimming, each tile passes through an in-line tile flipping station298 which can flip every other tile so that tiles are stacked face toface or back to back at a robotic palletizing or stacking station 300.Although it is not shown, it is understood that the range or line ofFIGS. 1-3 may include an in-line edge or tip shear station wherein, forexample, the tips of a cut pile faced carpet tile are sheared prior tobeing palletized. In accordance with the example shown in FIG. 3, tilesmay be removed from one of the conveyors 290 or 294, tip sheared, andthen placed back onto the conveyor as desired. Alternatively, tiles maybe stacked on to pallets by the robotic stacker 300, taken to anoff-line tip shearing operation, tip sheared, repalletized, packaged andshipped.

The stacked tiles 252 pass to a pallet wrapping station 302 where, forexample, a pallet of stacked tiles, for example 80 carpet tiles, isshrink wrapped (or sleeved and capped then wrapped) and then shipped toa customer, warehouse, or the like. The range of FIGS. 1-3 of thedrawings includes a plurality of treatment stations which afford one theopportunity to treat tiles or blanks with steam, wet out, water, stainblocker, soil release agents, bleach resistant agents, fluorocarbons,anti-bacterial agents, and/or the like. Should one or more of thesetreatments require steaming, they can be accomplished in treatmentstation 270. Should one or more of these treatments require heat, theymay be accomplished in one of the treatment stations 274 or 280 upstreamof dryer 282. Although it is not shown in FIG. 3 of the drawings, it iscontemplated that one may add a post treatment station following coolingstation 286, singulating device 288 or the like.

With reference to FIG. 4 of the drawings, there is shown a schematicrepresentation of a PREF patterning device 254. Also, included in thisview are block representations of a computer system 50 associated withan electronic control system 52, an electronic registration system 54,and a rotary pulse generator or a similar transducer 56. The collectiveoperation of these systems results in the generation of individual“on/off” actuation commands that control the flow of fluid fromindividual jets in valve cards arranged in valve card sets or arrays 58.The jets dispense fluid on substrate 252 in a controlled manner. Apreferred particular control system for the PREF patterning device isdescribed below with reference to FIGS. 22-29. By way of example onlyand not limitation, other control systems are described in U.S. Pat.Nos. 5,984,169, 5,128,876, 5,136,520, 5,140,686, 5,142,481, 5,195,143,5,208,592, 4,033,154, 4,545,086, and 4,984,169, each of which is herebyincorporated by reference herein.

Valve card sets or arrays 1-8 of FIG. 4 receive dye and/or chemicalsfrom dye or chemical supply 60. For example, valve card sets 1 and 2 mayreceive selective chemicals while valve card sets 3-8 may receiveselected dyes such as red, green, yellow, blue, black, brown. Further,motor 336 is controlled by control system 52 in order to convey thesubstrates 252 under and past each valve card array 58 and produce adyed substrate 252A having dye patterns, designs, or colors 70 thereon.It is preferred that substrates 252 be continuously conveyed past thevalve card arrays at a set speed, for example, 20 feet per minute, 40feet per minute, or 80 feet per minute or more. Although it is notpreferred, the substrates may be indexed past valve card arrays 58.Still further, although FIG. 4 depicts a patterning machine with fixeddye heads (substrate is moved), it is to be understood that thesubstrate may be held still and the valve card sets or arrays movedacross or over the substrate.

Although FIG. 4 only shows eight exemplary valve card sets or arrays 58,it is to be understood that the PREF patterning device 254 may includeany number of such valve card sets with any number of valve cards ineach set. In accordance with one particular example, the patterningapparatus 254 of the present invention has 24 valve card sets with 2 to4 of the sets being chemical valve card sets and the remaining 20-22valve card sets being provided with either a dye such as a colored dye,a clear dye or a diluent. In accordance with another example of thepresent invention, the patterning machine or device 254 includes 32valve card sets with two of the valve card sets, the first and secondvalve card set being chemical valve card sets while the remaining valvecard sets 3-32 are dye valve card sets or arrays for color dyes, cleardyes, diluents, dye blends, or the like.

With reference to FIGS. 5 and 6 of the drawings and in accordance with aparticular embodiment or example, a PREF patterning device, direct jetor drop-on-demand type jet dyeing machine or textile patterning machine254 conveys a plurality of carpet tiles, substrates or blanks 252 atop aconveyor 310 located below and approximate to a plurality of valve cardboxes or sections 312, 314, 316, and 318 each of which are shown tohouse eight valve card sets or arrays 362 (58) for a total of 32 valvecard sets. The conveyor 310 includes a plurality of separator bars,slats or spacers 320 which insure that each of the carpet tiles 252 islocated in the proper position on conveyor 310 as it is processed undereach of the valve card sets 1-32. The valve card sections 312, 314, 316,and 318 are supported by a support structure 322. The conveyor 310 issupported by a plurality of powered height adjustment units 324 eachincluding a servo motor 326 used to raise and lower a support screw 328which supports a pad 330 which serves to raise or lower the conveyor 310in response to electrical drive signals sent to servo motors 326. Eachof the units 324 are supported by structure 322.

The gap between jets of each of the valve cards and the substrate to bepatterned or dyed can be controlled from a remote location by electricalsignals to each of servo motors 326. Proper positioning of the conveyor310 relative to sections 312, 314, 316, and 318 is controlled by havingrods or members 332 ride up and down in cylindrical members or openings334 which provide for a large variation in gap between the valve cardjets and the substrate, for example, a gap of up to about 2 inches,preferably one-eighth of an inch to 1 inch, more preferably one-eighthof an inch to one-quarter to an inch. Servo motors 326 provide for anautomated adjustment of the gap between the jets and the substrate toaccount for the different pile heights of different substrates, texturedsubstrates, and the like.

Conveyor 310 is driven by motor 336 in response to signals from controlsystem 52. Motor 336 provides drive to one of end wheels or sprockets342 and 346. Conveyor 310 is designed to be lowered down away from valvecard sections 312, 314, 316, and 318 by lowering pads 330 which lowers aplurality of grooved wheels 338 down onto respective pointed tracks 340.Once the grooved wheels 338 are resting on tracks 340, the conveyor 310can be moved out from under the valve card set sections for servicing,maintenance, replacement of conveyor sections, removal of jammed tiles,or the like.

Pins or elements 332 are short enough that when support pads 330 arelowered sufficiently to allow rollers 338 to contact tracks 340 that thepins 332 are free of channels 334 and conveyor 310 is free to be movedalong tracks 340. Conveyor 310 is self-contained except for electricalconnections or cables and as such can be moved along tracks 340.

Although the conveyor 310 is shown adapted for use with carpet tiles, itis to be understood that the conveyor may be modified or replaced with aconveyor which is adapted for use with broadloom, floor mats, area rugs,runners, or the like. For example, the registration slats or bars 320may be removed to adapt the conveyor 310 for use with broadloomsubstrate.

Support structure 322 rests atop a plurality of adjustable resilientsupport feet 348 which tend to reduce noise and vibration. Also, supportpads 330 may be somewhat resilient and may tend to reduce noise andvibration.

Each of valve card boxes or sections 312, 314, 316, and 318 include aplurality of side walls 350, a bottom plate 352, top plates 354 and 356,and a plurality of hinged lids or plates 358 which provide access to theinterior of the sections for insertion, removal, or inspection ofparticular valve cards. It is preferred that the plates 354 and 356 andthe lids 358 be of sufficient strength so that they support the weightof an operator walking around on top of the apparatus or machine 254.

Bottom plate 352 is preferably precisely machined and includes aplurality of openings which receive the protruding jets or jet arrays ofeach of the valve cards as well as any protective pins which extendalongside the jet array of each valve card as will be described belowwith respect to FIGS. 17 and 18.

With reference to FIG. 6, a partial cut-away of side or end plate 350 ofvalve card box or section 312 shows a plurality of valve cards adjacentone another in an operative position within the box or section 312 andforming a valve card set or array 58 or valve card set or array number 1of patterning machine 254. For sake of discussion, when viewing themachine 254 from the front or from the end which receives substrates252, the left-hand most valve card of the first valve card set or arrayis valve card 1,1 and the number 1 jet of valve card 1,1 is jet 1 of thepatterning machine.

With reference to FIGS. 5-7, 12, 13, 13A, and 17 of the drawings, aparticular arrangement is shown such as a 40 gauge (0.025 inch or 0.0635cm) arrangement wherein a single fluid conduit or manifold 364 feedseach of the valve cards of two adjacent valve card sets or arrays sothat each of these adjacent valve card sets carries the same dye and/orchemical agents. As shown in FIGS. 13-13A, the adjacent valve card setscan be offset from one another so that a first valve card jet array withthe jets spaced, for example, at 20 gauge, that is 1/20 of an inch (0.05inch or 0.127 cm), is offset from a second valve card jet array byone-half of the gauge of the jet array (0.025 inch or 0.0635 cm) toproduce a resultant 40 gauge (0.025 inch or 0.0635 cm) arrangement. Inother words, patterns, designs, colors, images, or the like can becreated with 40 gauge or higher resolution using valve cards with jetsset at 20 gauge by offsetting selected arrays of valve cards.

Although FIGS. 5 and 7 show a 40 gauge arrangement or an arrangementwhere a single dye or chemical is fed to two adjacent valve card sets,it is to be understood that as shown in FIGS. 8, 10, 11, 11A and 18 thateach valve card set can be fed from a separate fluid manifold or conduit364 with each of the jet arrays of each of the valve cards of adjacentsets of valve cards being aligned to, for example, provide a 20 gauge(0.05 inch or 0.127 cm) arrangement in resolution for patterning ordyeing. This provides for an additional capacity for dyes or chemicalsin that each valve card set or array may have its own independent color,chemical, or the like. It is to be understood that the PREF patterningdevice 254 of the present invention may produce patterns in any selectedgauge by, for example, placing the jets at the desired spacing, usingselected jets, offsetting valve card sets and the like. For example, onecan produce 10 gauge (0.10 inch or 0.254 cm) patterns by spacing thejets for 10 gauge or by using every other jet in a 20 gauge jetarrangement.

With reference to FIG. 9, it is preferred that each of valve cards 360be easily inserted, installed, removed, or replaced within each valvecard box or section 312, 314, 316, 318. One installs a valve card 360 bysimply lifting the lid 358, and inserting the valve card (in a verticalorientation) into its respective space or seat in base plate 352 (or352A). Next, one attaches a power and identification (ID) cable 376 viaa quick connect plug or head 378 adapted to be releasably received in ajack or receiver 380 (much like a telephone plug is adapted to bereceived in a telephone jack). Also, one attaches a valve control cable386 via a connector 382 adapted to be received in a quick connect anddisconnect receiver or socket 384. The valve control cable receiver 384includes right and left pivoting end clips 388 which provide for quickconnection and disconnection of the valve control cable 386. Theremaining item to be connected to complete the hook up of the valve card360 is a fluid quick connect with shut off coupling 390 on the end of afluid tube or hose 392 which is adapted to be connected to a matingquick connect element 394 extending from manifold 364. The coupling 390and hose 392 provide operative fluid connection between the valve card360 and the manifold 364. Each valve card location within the patterningmachine 254 has its own valve control cable 386 and power and ID cable378. In this way, the machine control system can individually directeach jet (valve) of each valve card to fire as desired.

In accordance with the particular embodiment shown, one is able toinsert and connect a new valve card into a selected valve card locationwithin the valve card box or section within a matter of seconds.Likewise, one is able to remove a valve card should it be necessary formaintenance or replacement of a faulty or damaged valve card in a matterseconds by disconnecting coupling 390, connector 382, and plug 378 fromtheir respective mating connectors or sockets and then pulling the valvecard from its seat or location in base plate 352 or 352A.

In accordance with one example of the present invention, the speed ofprocessing through the patterning device or machine 254 may be doubledor substantially increased by doubling up on the same color, that is,for example, using an arrangement like that of FIG. 7 wherein the samecolor is supplied to two adjacent valve card sets but having the jets ofthe adjacent valve card sets aligned as shown in FIG. 11A so that onecan apply two drops of the same dye or chemical onto the same pixel orlocation on the substrate. Consequently, one can halve the minimum dropvolume applied by each jet of the adjacent valve card arrays and therebytotal 100% of the minimum drop volume for that particular substrate,dye, chemical, chemistry, or the like. This can also be done by havingtwo manifolds 364 of FIG. 8 being filled with the same dye, chemicalagent, chemistry, or the like. Also, it is to be understood thatdifferent colors may be applied over one another for shot-on-shotblending, different colors may be applied next to each other forshot-by-shot blending, and the like.

With reference to FIGS. 7-13, 17 and 18 of the drawings, each of thevalve cards 360 is positioned very accurately within its valve card seator location in base plate 352, 352A by a plurality of pins 400 and 402or 404 and 406, a spring loaded locking ball 408 and a locking ballreceiver bar 410, and a positioning bar or post 412 which rides againsta flat edge 414 of base 416 or by having the flat edge 414 ride againstthe flat back of a locking ball receiver 410.

Preferably, each of the manifolds or fluid conduits 364 passes throughthe valve card set box or section 312, 314, 316, 318 and extendsoutwardly from at least one side wall 350, preferably both side walls350, to provide for easy connection of dye or chemical supply thereto onone or both ends thereof or for connection of dye or chemical supply toone end thereof and provide the other end to be used for flushing orcleaning out of the manifold 364.

Each of the valve card boxes or sections 312, 314, 316, 318 alsoincludes a plurality of power and control support plates or boards 420which support connectors or distribution components for each of thevalve control cables 386 and power and ID cables 376. With reference toFIG. 6 of the drawings, pattern machine 254 includes an extendedenclosure 422 on at least one side thereof to provide a space forelectrical components, cables, connections, and the like from, forexample, electronic control system 52, electronic registration 54,and/or transducer 56 to each of the valve control cables 386 and powerand ID cables 376. In accordance with one example, a one meter widepatterning apparatus includes 35 valve cards per valve card array orset, has 32 valve card sets for a total of 1,120 valve cards (each with24 jets), 1,120 valve control cables, and 1,120 power and ID cables.

Each of the valve cards 360 is preferably a self-contained or allinclusive valve card assembly including electronics, power, fluidics,valves, jets, and the like which preferably provide for precise andaccurate deposition of selected quantities of fluid onto a substratepassing under the jets 424 of each of the valve cards 360. Also, thevalve cards have the jets 424 arranged in staggered angled rows orcolumns of jets which provides for a compact arrangement of valve cardsas well as for a high resolution or high gauge (large number of jets),for example, 20 gauge (0.05 inch or 0.127 cm) or 40 gauge (0.025 inch or0.0635 cm) arrangement of jets. For example, the jets on each valve cardof FIGS. 10 and 12 may be spaced to produce a 20 gauge or 0.05 inch(0.127 cm) resolution pattern. By placing the jets in the angled arrayshown, one is also able to limit the length of the valve card in thedirection of travel of the substrate.

With reference again to FIG. 9, the preferably all-inclusive valve cardor valve card module 360 further includes a identification (ID) board426 that provides an electronic serial number unique to each valve card.The patterning machine control system queries the ID board 426 (via line376) and receives a card number so that the system can track thelocation of the particular valve card, the history of the card,maintenance of the card, and the like. Consequently, cable or line 376includes both electrical power and ID query lines.

Power is transferred by power line 428 over to a noise filter 430 on amain board 432 of valve card 360. Main board 432 also includeselectronic components for control of each valve, including resistorpacks 434, integrated circuits (ICs) 436, zener diodes 438, diodes 440,and the like which provide electronic control signals for selectivelyoperating or actuating (opening) each solenoid valve to allow fluid orliquid such as dye or chemicals to be dispensed from the selected jetcorresponding to that particular valve. In accordance with theparticular example shown in FIGS. 9, 10 and 12, there are 24 valves and24 corresponding jets per valve card. In this way, each valve cardprovides a fixed array of individually controlled dye dispensers orapplicators. Also, a plurality of aligned valve cards, a valve card setor array, preferably spans the width of the entire substrate and servesas an applicator bar or color bar.

Although the valve cards shown in FIGS. 9-13 each have 24 jets (and 24valves), it is contemplated that one could have any number of jets pervalve card, for example, 8, 16, 20, 24, or the like depending on theresolution desired, the drop volume desired, the substrate being dyed,whether or not the jets of each array are angled, whether the valvecards are aligned with one another, and the like. The shown valve cardswith jets spaced for 20 gauge (0.05 inch or 0.127 cm) patterning of thepresent invention are novel, unique in the industry, and provide for asubstantially true 20×20 gauge resolution on pile carpet.

With reference to FIGS. 9 and 14-16, valve card or valve card module 360further includes a dye or fluid manifold 442 which receives fluid fromhose 392 and distributes it to twenty-four manifold outlets 443 whichare each respectively connected to a manifold to valve tube 444 which isreceived over an upper valve tube or inlet 446 of valve 448. Each of theupper valve tubes 446 passes through a daughter board or valveconnection interface printed circuit board (PCB) 450 which provides fornot only support and location of the upper tube 446 of each valve, butalso provides for the electrical connection between the valve controlcircuitry on board 432 and positive and negative electrical terminals orleads 447 and 449 on each valve. This arrangement facilitates themanufacture of the valve card as well as repair or replacement of faultyvalves. Each of the valves 448 has a lower tube or outlet 452 whichextends below a valve support plate 454 and receives a valve to jet tube456 which operatively connects outlet 452 to a respective jet tube 458of jet 424. Jet tubes 458 pass through base plate 416 and in theembodiment shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 are protected by protection pins 460.

Daughter board 450 is supported by one or more board spacers 462 andvalve support plate 454 is in turn supported by a valve bracket 464 andspacers 466. Bracket 464 also supports locking ball mechanism 408. As istypical with locking ball units, locking ball 408 includes a springwhich biases the ball outwardly to provide a snap fit of the valve cardwithin its seat.

Valve card base 416 further supports a cylindrical pin receiver 468which is adapted to receive pin 400 . Base plate 416 also includes anopening or slot 470 adapted to receive pin 402. With reference to FIG.9, each of the valves 448 is arranged in one of three off-set rows ofeight valves each so that the valves are nested and provide a compactarrangement thereof.

In accordance with one particular example of the present invention, eachof the valves 448 has a cylindrical valve body 472 having outerdimensions of approximately 0.83 inch in length and 0.22 inch indiameter. In accordance with the present invention, it is preferred thateach of the valves be an in-line solenoid valve which is electricallyactuated open and which is biased closed by a spring 474 as shown inFIGS. 14 and 15. It is preferred that the valves are in-line orflow-through valves in order to keep the valve card 360 relativelysmall, with, for example, outer dimensions of approximately 11½″ inchestall, 1⅜ inches wide, and 4¼ inches long (not including the portion ofhose 392 that extends beyond the main board 432). Also, a relativelysmall valve size while still being adequate to provide the neededminimum drop volume for a particular substrate, also reduces energyrequirements, reduces heat generation, and allows for a greater numberof valves or jets, and thereby provides for increased gauge of thepatterning machine 254.

Although the valve card embodiment shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 of thedrawings may be a potentially preferred embodiment, an alternativeembodiment of a valve card 360A is shown in FIGS. 12 and 13 of thedrawings wherein a base plate 416A is adapted to receive a pin 404 in aV-slot 476 and a pin 406 in slot 470. Valve cards 360A are like valvecards 360 in that they include twenty-four jets 424 arranged in anangled array of three angled rows or columns of jets. As mentionedabove, FIGS. 13 and 13A show that one can double the gauge of themachine by offsetting adjacent valve card sets relative one to another.

With reference again to FIGS. 14-16 of the drawings, it is preferredthat each of the valves 448 be an electrically actuated solenoid valvehaving coils or windings 478 which when activated via leads 447, 449move a valve shaft or member 480 from the closed position shown in FIG.15 to the open position shown in FIG. 14 against the bias of spring 474.This moves a resilient valve seat 482 away from tube 452 to allow fluidto flow under pressure through valve 448 and into tube 452. Inparticular, liquid such as dye or chemical agents flow through tube 446,through an annular passage 484, through and around spring 474, aroundmember 480, between seat 482 and tube 452, and into tube 452. Member 480includes a socket or receiver 486 which receives resilient seat 482. Inaccordance with one embodiment, shaft 480 is formed of 430F stainlesssteel and resilient seat 482 is formed of EPDM rubber.

In the valve closed position of FIG. 15, fluid such as dye, chemicalagents, air, or the like is not allowed to pass through valve 448 and assuch no fluid or liquid is dispensed or ejected from jet 424. Any liquidin tube 452, tube 456, and tube 458 above jewel orifice 488 is held inplace by capillary action. When the valve is open as shown in FIG. 14,fluid passes through tube 452, through tube 456, through jet tube 458,through orifice 489 of jewel orifice 488, and out of jet tube 458 of jet424. As valve 448 may be actuated very quickly, a small drop or amountof liquid may be ejected from jet 424. Also, it is to be understood thatthe valve 448 may be held open for quite some time to allow a stream offluid to be dispensed from jet 424.

Jet tube 458 includes a plurality of nubs 490 or an annular nub whichretains jeweled orifice 488 within jet tube 458. The inner diameter ofthe jet tube 458 is not critical as the orifice 489 of the jeweledorifice 488 determines the liquid dispensed out of the jet 424 alongwith the firing time, viscosity, chemistry, and the like.

In accordance with the present invention, it is preferred that the jet424 include a precision crafted jeweled orifice 488 so as to provide asubstantially splatter-free valve jet in that fluid is dispensed orejected from the jet by being forced through the orifice 489 rather thanout the end of jet tube 458. Although it is preferred that the jet 424include jeweled orifice 488, it is contemplated that one may remove thejeweled orifice 488 or replace it with an orifice plate or otherrestriction.

In accordance with one particular example of the present invention, thejeweled orifice has an exit opening or orifice 489 with a diameter ofabout 0.02 inch or less. In accordance with a particular example of thepresent invention, tube 444 has a 0.05 inch inner diameter and a 0.09inch outer diameter, tube 456 has a 0.032 inch inner diameter and a 0.09inch outer diameter, tube 444 has a tube length of 1.23 inches, and eachof tubes 456 has a sufficient length to provide connection betweenrespective pairs of the tubes 452 and jet tubes 458.

With reference to FIG. 9 of the drawings, not all the valve-to-jet tubes456 are shown in their entirety for the sake of clarity and to show aportion of the back of the base plate 416. Nevertheless, it is to beunderstood that each of the valve outlet tubes 452 is connected to a jettube 458 by a respective tube 456.

In accordance with one example of the present invention, it is preferredthat the fluid supplied to hose 392 and dye manifold 442 of valve card360 or valve card 360A be supplied at a pressure of between about 15 and35 psi, more preferably about 25-30 psi, and most preferably at aconstant pressure of about 30 psi. By supplying the fluid at a constantpressure, one can provide for more accurate drop volumes or wet pickupof fluid on the substrate.

In accordance with a particular example of the present invention, eachof the valves 448 meets the following valve specification:

Exemplary Valve Specification

This example defines the design, performance, and test specificationsfor the preferred valve. Specifications are defined where appropriatefor the individual valve, as well as for the valve card modules.

1.0 Design and Performance Specification

This section defines the parameters that affect the valve design as wellas expected performance of the valve and valve card module.

1.1 Flow Media

The valve is designed to operate with the following flow media: Media:Aqueous Solutions, Dispersions, and Emulsions Viscosity: 1-1300centipoise (Brookfield LVT #3 @ 60 rpm) pH: 3.0-12.0 Specific Gravity:0.95-1.05 Filtration: 5 micron nominal Temperature: 5-45° C. OperatingPressure: ≦40 psig

1.2 Electrical

The solenoid actuation system is designed to operate under the followingconditions: HSD Pulse Voltage: 45.6-50.4 VDC HSD Pulse Duration:237.5-262.5 microseconds Holding Voltage: 2.7-3.3 VDC Power Dissipation:600 milliwatts (42 ohm coil) where: HSD = High Speed Drive.

1.3 Exit Jewel Orifice

The jewel orifice and the jewel orifice tube are constructed to meet thefollowing design and performance criteria: Jewel Orifice 0.0159-0.0161inches Diameter: Orifice/Tube Within 0.100 inch diameter circle at 4inch Directivity: standoff, with tube mounted in valve card module.

1.4 Machining Tolerance

The machining tolerance for valve card module base plate is ±0.001inches unless otherwise stated.

1.5 Performance

Within the design constraints listed above, the required valveperformance is specified as follows: Design Life: ≧2 × 10⁹ CyclesT_(OPEN): ≦500 microseconds (Time for valve to fully open.) ΔT_(CLOSE):≦1,000 microseconds (Time for valve to fully close.) Duty Cycle: 0-100%Leakage: None at ≦40 psig (<1 drop/hour)

The individual valves are assembled onto valve card modules whichcontain 24 valves. Flow uniformity from valve to valve within a givenvalve card, as well as absolute flow is preferred for proper systemperformance. The following specifications define the performance ofindividual valves as well as the flow characteristics of the valve cardmodule taken as a whole. For this specification a representative mediais specified. Flow Media: Kelzan S ® xanthan gum Viscosity: 700-750centipoise (Brookfield LVT #3 @ 60 rpm) pH: 4.5-5.0 Filtration: 5 micronnominal Pressure: 29.7-30.3 psig Temperature: 20-35° C.

Flow 5000 Cycles: 5.00 milliseconds ON, Condition: 1.00 milliseconds OFFOutput: μ_(VC): 17.00-22.00 grams f_(i): (0.95 * μ_(VC)) ≦ f_(i) ≦(1.05 * μ_(VC))

-   -   where: f_(i)=output for an individual valve on a valve card        module

μ_(VC)=mean output of a valve card module=Σf_(i)/24, i=1,2, . . . , 24.

The above specification requires that the maximum deviation from themean output of a valve card module by any individual valve is less thanor equal to 5%. Further, the mean output of the valve card module ispreferably between 17.00 and 22.00 grams for this condition.

With reference to FIGS. 7, 12-13 and 17 of the drawings, base plate 352has a plurality of openings 492 therethrough adapted to receive each ofthe respective arrays of jets 424 on the base of each of the valve cards360A. Also, base plate 352 supports respective pins 404 and 406 whichserve to position the base plate 416A of each valve card 360A. Furtherbase plate 352 supports members 410 and 412 which serve to furtheraccurately position the valve card 360A and to provide for a quickconnect and disconnect of the seating of the valve card relative to thebase plate 352. Locking ball or ball plunger 408 is releasably receivedin a concave socket in support or receiver 410 so that the valve card360A snaps into place in its selected seat or location in base plate352. Base plate 352 further includes a recess on the bottom surfacethereof in the area of openings 492 to provide easy access to the jets,visibility of the jets, and the like.

With reference to FIGS. 8, 9-11 and 18 of the drawings, base plate 352Aincludes a plurality of openings 492 to provide for the angled array ofjets 424 of each of the valve cards 360. Further, base plate 352Asupports pins 400 and 402 which provide for positioning of base plate416 of each of the valve cards 360. Still further, base plate 352Asupports members 410 and 412 which further provide for positioning ofeach of the valve cards and for a quick connect and disconnect orseating of the valve card. Like base plate 352, base plate 352A includesa recess 494 on the lower surface thereof to further accommodate thejets 424.

Each of base plates 352 and 352A are preferably precision machined itemsto provide for very accurate placement of valve cards in the machine andthereby provide accurate placement of the dye and/or the chemicals onthe substrate to produce high resolution designs, excellent registrationof one design to the next, repeatability of product, top quality, andthe like.

With reference to FIG. 19 of the drawings, each of the valve card setsor arrays (fixed arrays of individually controlled dye dispensers orapplicators) is fed a fluid or liquid such as a dye, chemical agent, orthe like from a fluid tank which preferably is kept at a constantpressure. Also, it may be advantageous to continuously agitate the fluidor liquid in the tank in order to keep it well mixed, keep the dyedispersed, and the like.

With reference to FIG. 20 of the drawings, one may supply a particularvalve card set or array from a Fluid A or Fluid B from each of a Tank Aor Tank B selectively by operating a Valve A which is, for example, a3-way valve which provides Fluid A from Tank A to fluid conduit ormanifold 364, Fluid B from Tank B to fluid conduit 364, or is closed toprovide neither Fluid A or Fluid B to conduit 364. When supplying FluidA or Fluid B to conduit 364 and to valve cards 360 of one or more valvecard sets, Valve B is usually closed. When flushing out fluid conduit364 with, for example, Fluid A or Fluid B, Valve B can be opened todrain the contaminated fluid so that conduit 364 contains only the fluidof choice. Once the manifold 364 is flushed, Valve B is closed, and thenthe valve cards are flushed. In this fashion, one can quickly changefrom one color to the next or from one chemistry to the next in aparticular valve card set or combination of valve card sets.

With reference to FIG. 21 of the drawings, one may supply a Fluid 1 orFluid 2 to each of valve cards 360 utilizing individual switch valvesfor each valve card which selectively allows either Fluid 1 or Fluid 2to pass to the valve card. To flush the valve card and start with a newcolor or different fluid, one simply switches to the new color or fluidand allows that to flow through the valve card a sufficient time toflush the old fluid from the valve card. This may reduce waste of dye orchemicals as contrasted to other systems which require the flushing ofan entire fluid conduit from a supply tank, manifold, or the like.

With reference to each of FIGS. 19, 20, and 21, one can place a new dyeor chemical, color, or the like in a dye tank or chemical tank bydraining the tank of the old fluid and either flushing the tank witheither the new fluid or with a flushing fluid or liquid, such as water,sufficiently to remove the old fluid, drain the flushing fluid, and addthe new fluid. Hence, process colors can be changed rather readily bychanging out the particular dye mix of each dye tank.

In accordance with one example of the present invention and withreference to FIG. 20 of the drawings, a quick change method to rapidlyswitch color in a textile printing machine utilizes one manifold andmultiple dye supply. Dye change-over is accomplished by switching dyesupplies with a 3-way valve and then momentarily opening the drain valveto dump old dye color from the manifold. Old dye that remains in theline between the manifold and the print head or jets can be dumped outthrough the print head. The drain valve should be held open a littlelonger than it takes to dump all the old dye, this will assure that anydye clinging to the manifold walls will be stripped off by wall shear.More than two colors can be accommodated by using multiple dye suppliesand multiple-way valving.

In accordance with another example of the present invention and withreference to FIG. 21 of the drawings, multiple manifolds and multipledye supplies are used to provide a quick color change. Dye change-overis accomplished by switching dye supplies with a multi-way valve, onefor each print head or valve card. Old dye in the line between themultiple-way valve and the print head can be dumped out through theprint head. Old dye in the manifold can be cleaned out through the opendrain valve. Meanwhile, new dye supply and manifold is used forprinting. Once cleaned out, another color can be loaded into the old dyesupply manifold, readying another dye for printing. Alternatively,different colors can be maintained in each dye supply system with amulti-way valve used to switch among colors. In this fashion, only dyein the line between the multi-way valve and the print head need bedrained or wasted. This method provides a number of colors quicklyavailable for printing.

In accordance with a particular example of the present invention andwith reference with FIG. 19, a pressure control system includes apressurized tank, pump, pressure and level sensors, an air regulator,and two controllers that allow the use of a liquid at a rapidly varyingrate while maintaining constant pressure and while the liquid isreplenished.

The objective is to maintain constant pressure at the pressure sensor(the usage point) while liquid is being used from the tank at a rapidlychanging flow rate. A signal from the pressure sensor is fed to thecontroller than in turn controls the regulator. Another controllermaintains a liquid level using a continuous level sensor as input and aspeed control pump as output.

An air blanket in the pressure tank reduces variations in pressure.Without the air blanket, any mismatch in pump speed and liquid usagerate would, because of the incompressibility of liquid, result inchanges in pressure. The air blanket absorbs any mismatch in liquid flowrates by either compressing or expanding. Additionally, as the aircompresses or expands, the regulator will exhaust or supply air, furtherdecreasing the variation in pressure.

Controlling liquid levels in the pressure tank reduces errors inregulation. No real regulator can perfectly maintain pressure. Byreducing changes in liquid levels, the necessary flow of air through theregulator will be decreased, providing more precise pressure control.

Larger air blankets in the pressure tank reduces variation in pressure.As the air blanket volume is increased, and for a given change in liquidvolume, there will be less variation in pressure. This can be shown withthe ideal gas law. For example, consider 2 tanks, A and B. Tank A has 10gallons of air blanket and Tank B has 100 gallons of air blanket. Theliquid volume change is 1 gallon and the initial pressure of 30 psig.Tank B would see less variation in pressure due to changes in liquidlevel.

It is contemplated that textile materials may be patterned using a widevariety of natural or synthetic dyes, including acid dyes, basic dyes,reactive dyes, direct dyes, disperse dyes, mordant dyes, or pigments,depending upon the application and the fiber content of the substrate tobe dyed. The teachings herein are applicable to the use of a broad rangeof such dyes, as well as a broad range of textile materials. Textilematerials which can be pattern dyed by means of the present inventioninclude tufted, bonded, knitted, woven, flocked, needle punched, andnon-woven textile materials, such as flat woven, pile woven, circularknit, flat knit, warp knit, cut pile, loop pile, cut and loop pile,textured pile, and the like. Typically, but not necessarily, suchtextile materials will include a pile or nap surface. Such textilematerials may include floor coverings (e.g., carpets, rugs, carpettiles, area rugs, runners, floor mats, etc.), drapery fabrics,upholstery fabrics (including automotive upholstery fabrics), panelfabrics, and the like. Such textile materials can be formed of naturalor synthetic fibers, such as polyester, nylon, wool, cotton and acrylic,as well as textile materials containing mixtures of such natural orsynthetic fibers, blends, or combinations thereof.

With reference to FIGS. 1-21 of the drawings, there is presentedexemplary embodiments of direct jet dyeing apparatus for the pixel wiseapplication of dyes, chemical agents, or the like to a textile materialor substrate, such as a pile substrate, such as carpet or the like.

Although the apparatus and methods of the present invention are notlimited to a particular substrate, examples of several exemplarysubstrates for use with the apparatus are described below.

Base Construction Examples:

Fiber Type

-   -   Type 6 nylon BCF    -   Type 6 nylon Staple    -   Type 6,6 nylon BCF    -   Type 6,6 nylon Staple    -   100% wool    -   wool/nylon blends (to include wool blends from 99% to 50 wool)    -   wool/nylon blends (to include wool/nylon blends with additional        low melt fiber of polyester, polyolefin, nylon, or like; up to        15%)    -   other fibers such as polyester, PTT, cotton, dyeable        polypropylene, and the like

Yarn Size

-   -   BCF denier range: 500 d to 2500 d    -   Staple yarn size (cotton count): 1.0 cc-6.0 cc

Yarn Ply

-   -   1-4 ply

Yarn Color

-   -   Natural, white, light colored, or the like. The yarn may be yarn        dyed, solution dyed, space dyed, or natural. A light colored or        white yarn can be over dyed. A white or light beige color is        preferred.

Construction Type

-   -   Tufted    -   bonded (latex, PVC, hot melt)    -   needle punch, hydroentangled, flocked, and the like

Construction Method

-   -   cut pile    -   loop pile    -   woven (Axminster, Wilton, face-to-face, and the like)    -   non woven

Tufted Construction Specifications GAUGE 5/32 g; 1/8 g; 1/10 g; 5/64 g;1/16 g; and the like WEIGHT 8 oz/sq. yd. -- up to -- 80 oz/sq. yd.STITCH 6 stitches per inch -- up to - 18 stitches per inch PILE HEIGHT.05 inches -- up to -- .75 inches

EXAMPLES

1. Wool/Nylon 80/20 wool/nylon; 2.3 cc size; 2 ply; ˜6 tpi blend twist;chemically set or Superba heatset ⅛ g tufted cut pile; ˜40 oz/sq yd.; ˜9stitches per inch; ˜.35″ pile height 2. 32 oz. Bonded 100% type 6.6staple nylon; 3.15 cc size; 2 ply; white base 4.5 tpi twist; Superbaheatset ˜1/8 g latex bonded cut pile; 32 oz/sq yd.; ˜9 folds per inch;˜.25″ pile height 3. 20 oz. Tufted 100% type 6.6 BCF nylon; 1120 d +1315 d size; white base 2 ply; 4.5 twist; Superba heatset 1/10 g tuftedloop; 20 oz/sq yd.; ˜12 stitches per inch; ˜.15″ pile height 4. 12 oz.Tufted 100% type 6.6 BCF nylon; 1360 d size; white base 1 ply; 0 twist;no heatset 1/10 g tufted loop; 12 oz/sq yd.; ˜12 stitches per inch;˜.13″ pile height 5. 18 oz. BCF 100% type 6 BCF nylon; 1095 d size; 2ply; filament cut pile 4.5 twist per inch; Superba heatset 1/10 g tuftedcut pile; 18 oz/sq yd.; ˜13 stitches per inch; ˜.25″ pile height 6. 17.5oz. Tufted Face Weight: 17.5 oz/sq yd. Face Cushion Back stitches perinch: 12.0 Carpet Tile (36 inch tufting gauge: 5/64 square having atufted tuft density: 153.6 per sq inch face, latex precoat, pile height:11/64″ and 8/64″ hot melt adhesive, (dual pile ht. product) glassstabilizer, foam fiber: 900 d type 6.6 BCF nylon cushion, and felt yarn:2 ply headset with 5 turns per inch backing). dye method: jet dye

finishes:

1. stain blocker

2. bleach resist chemistry

3. antimicrobial, such as AlphaSan® antimicrobial agent Precoat: 16oz./sq. yd. SBR latex Hot Melt: 44 oz./sq. yd. bitumen hot meltStabilizer: 2 oz./sq. yd. nonwoven glass mat with binder Polyurethanedensity 15 lbs. per cubic foot (possible range: Cushion: 15-25 lbs. percubic foot) Felt: 3-4 oz./sq. yd. nonwoven PET/PP

7. 17.5 oz. Tufted Face Broadloom Carpet (6 foot wide roll goods withtufted face, latex precoat, foam cushion, and felt backing). FaceWeight: 17.5 oz./sq. yd. Stitches per inch: 12.0 Tufting gauge: 5/64Tuft density: 153.6 per sq. inch Pile height: 11/64″ and 8/64″ (dualpile ht. product) Fiber: 900 d type 6.6 BCF nylon Yarn: 2 ply heatsetwith 5 turns per inch Dye method: jet dye

Finishes:

1. stain blocker

2. bleach resist chemistry

3. antimicrobial, such as AlphaSan® antimicrobial agent

Precoat: 12 oz./sq. yd. of SBR latex

Polyurethane Cushion: density 15 lbs. per cubic foot (possible range:15-25 lbs. per cubic foot)

Felt: 3-4 oz. per sq. yd. nonwoven PET/PP

In accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention,wherein higher resolution patterns, designs, or the like are applied toa substrate such as pile carpet, it may be preferred to use smaller dpfor finer yarns which dye darker and/or to use semi-dull yarns whichprovide less frostiness as contrasted to conventional carpet yarns orfaces.

Control System Detailed Discussion

The following is a description of an electronic control system suitablefor operation of the above-described preferred patterning device, as setforth in FIGS. 1 through 21. Figures applicable to this description areFIGS. 22 through 29. It should be noted that, in the interest ofsimplifying the description, the number of arrays or color bars has beenassumed to be eight, and the print gauge (i.e., dots per inch) of thepatterning device has been assumed to be 20. The terms “jet” and“applicator” are interchangeable; both refer to an individuallyaddressable dye applicator. Also, the term “array” and “color bar,” whenreferring to the arrangement of dye applicators associated with the PREFpatterning machine, are similarly interchangeable. Extrapolating theteachings herein to a larger number of color bars or to a differentprint gauge, as may be required in connection with the above-describedpatterning device, will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

Pattern data is accepted in the form of a series of eight bit unitswhich uniquely identify a pattern design element to be associated withthat pattern element or pixel. The number of different pattern designelements is equal to the number of distinct areas of the pattern whichmay be assigned a separate color. It should be noted that the teachingsherein can be easily adapted by those skilled in the art to accommodate12 or 16 bit data, or more, if necessary.

The process of sequencing the individual pattern line data toaccommodate substrate travel time between adjacent arrays is performedthrough the use of array-specific Random Access Memories (RAMs), whichare preferably of the static type. Prior to any data being loaded, allRAMs should be initialized to zero. All pattern data for a specificarray is then loaded into a RAM individually associated with that array.The pattern data is in the form of a series of bytes, each bytespecifying a desired firing time for a single applicator or jetcomprising the array. The loading process is a coordinated one, with alljet firing time data being loaded into the respective RAMs at the sametime and in the same relative order, i.e., all firing timescorresponding to the first line of the pattern for all jets in eacharray is loaded in the appropriate RAM first, followed by all datacorresponding to the second pattern line, etc. Each RAM is read usingreading address offsets which effectively delay the reading of the dataa sufficient amount of time to allow a specific area of the substrate to“catch up” to the corresponding pattern data for that specific areawhich will be sent to the next array along the substrate path. As willbe explained, the spacing or offsetting of the individual jets arrangedalong diagonals on valve cards within an array or color bar can beaccommodated by adjustments made to the reading address.

At this time, the pattern data, in the form of a series of individualfiring times expressed in byte form, is preferably transformed into asequence of individual binary digit (“bit”) groups. Each group in thesequence represents the value of its corresponding respective firingtime by the relative number of binary digits of a predetermined logicvalue (e.g., logical “one”=“fire”) which are sequentially “stacked”within each group. This transformation allows the firing times,expressed in byte form, to be expressed as a continuing sequence ofindividual firing commands (i.e., single bits) which may be recognizedby the applicators

The data from each RAM, having been sequenced to accommodate thesubstrate travel time between the arrays, is loaded into a collection ofFirst-In First-Out Memories (FIFOs). For configurations where theindividual jet (i.e., applicators) associated with a given color bar arenot in a straight line across the substrate path, as is the case for thestaggered jets of the patterning device of FIGS. 10 through 11A, the RAMoffset address must be adjusted to compensate for the jet to jet spacingin the direction of substrate movement. Each array is associated with anindividual set of FIFOs. Each FIFO repeatedly sends its contents, onebyte at a time and strictly in the order in which the bytes wereoriginally loaded, to a comparator. The value of the byte, representinga desired elapsed firing time of a single jet along the array, iscompared with a clock value that has been initialized to provide a valuerepresenting the smallest increment of time for which control of any jetis desired. As a result of the comparison, a firing command in the formof a logical “one” or logical “zero”, which signifies that the jet is to“fire” or “not fire”, respectively, is generated and, in a preferredembodiment, is forwarded to a shift register associated with the array,as well as to a detector. After all bytes (representing all jetlocations along that array) have been sent and compared, the contents ofthe shift register are forwarded, in parallel, to the air valveassemblies along the array by way of a latch associated with the shiftregister. Thereafter, the counter value is incremented, the samecontents of the FIFO are compared with the new counter value, and thecontents of the shift register are again forwarded, in a parallel formatand via a latch, to the air valve assemblies in the array.

At some counter value, all elapsed firing times read from the FIFOs willbe less than or equal to that value of the counter. When this conditionexists at every array, fresh data, representing a new pattern line, isforwarded from the RAM in response to a transducer pulse indicating thesubstrate has moved an amount equivalent to one pattern line. This freshdata is loaded into the FIFOs and a new series of iterative comparisonsis initiated, using a re-initialized counter. This process is repeateduntil all pattern lines have been processed. If the pattern is to berepeated, the RAM re-initiates the above procedure by sending the firstpattern line to the appropriate FIFO's.

For purposes of discussion, the electronic control system of the instantinvention will be described in conjunction with the PREF patterningapparatus discussed above, to which this control system is particularlywell suited. It should be understood, however, that the electroniccontrol system of the instant invention may be used, perhaps withobvious modifications, in other devices where similar quantities ofdigitized data must be rapidly distributed to a large number ofindividual elements.

In a typical dyeing operation utilizing such apparatus, so long as nopattern information is supplied by control device 20 to the air valves Vassociated with the array of dye outlets 52, the valves remain “open” topermit passage of pressurized air from air manifold 74 through airsupply conduits 64, which continuously deflects all of the continuouslyflowing dye streams from the array outlets 52 into the primarycollection chamber 80 for recirculation. When the substrate 12 initiallypasses beneath the dye outlets 52 of the individual arrays 26, patterncontrol system 20 is actuated in a suitable manner, such as manually byan operator Thereafter, signals from transducer 18 prompt patterninformation to be processed and sent from pattern control system 20. Asdictated by the pattern information, pattern control system 20 generatescontrol signals to selectively “close” appropriate air valves so that,in accordance with the desired pattern, deflecting air streams atspecified individual dye outlets 52 along the arrays 26 are interruptedand the corresponding dye streams are not deflected, but instead areallowed to continue along their normal discharge paths to strike thesubstrate 12. Thus, by operating the air valves of each array in thedesired pattern sequence, a pattern of dye may be placed on thesubstrate during its passage under the respective array.

For the sake of discussion, the following assumptions, conventions, anddefinitions are used herein. The term “dye jet” or “jet” refers to theapplicator apparatus individually associated with the formation of eachdye stream in the various arrays. It will be assumed that the substratewill be printed with a pattern having a resolution or print gauge ofone-tenth inch as measured along the path under the arrays, i.e., thearrays will direct (or interrupt the flow of) dye onto the substrate inaccordance with instructions given each time the substrate movesone-twentieth of an inch (1.27 mm) along its path. This implies that apattern line, as defined earlier (i.e., a continuous line of singlepattern elements extending across the substrate), has a width orthickness of one-twentieth of an inch (1.27 mm). Substrate speed alongthe conveyor will be assumed to be one linear inch per second, or fivelinear feet per minute. This implies that, during each time period inwhich the substrate moves one-twentieth of an inch (i.e., eachone-twentieth of a second), which hereinafter may be referred to as apattern cycle, each and every valve controlling the individual dye jetsin the various arrays will receive an electronically encoded instructionwhich specifies (a) whether the valve should interrupt the flow ofdiverting air intersecting its respective dye jet and, if so, (b) theduration of such interruption. This time, during which the stream of dyeis undeflected and contacts the substrate, may be referred to as “firingtime” or the time during which a dye jet “fires” or is actuated. Firingtime and dye contact time are synonymous. Array sequence numbering,i.e., first, second, etc., refers to the order in which the substratepasses under or opposite the respective arrays. Similarly, “downstream”and “upstream” refer to the conveyor direction and opposite thatdirection, respectively. A total of eight arrays are assumed, eachhaving four hundred eighty individual dye jets, although the inventionis by no means limited to such numbers and may easily be adapted tosupport thousands of individual dye jets per array, and/or a greaternumber of individual arrays. Array-to-array spacing along the directionof substrate travel is assumed to be uniformly ten inches (25.4 cm),i.e., two hundred pattern line widths. Note that two hundred patternlines implies the processing of pattern data for two hundred patterncycles.

For purposes of comparison, a control system of the prior art isdisclosed in FIG. 6 and will be described in detail below. For purposesof explanation, the format of the patterning data or patterninginstructions for this prior art control system, as indicated in FIG. 6,is schematically depicted in FIG. 7. As shown, the pattern element data(in Data Format A1) is first converted to “on/off” firing instructions(referring to the deactuation or actuation, respectively, of thediverting air associated with the individual dye streams) byelectronically associating the “raw” pattern data with pre-generatedfiring instruction data from a computer generated look-up table. Thisfiring instruction data merely specifies, using a single logical bit foreach jet, which jets in a given array shall fire during a given patterncycle, and is represented by Data Format A2 of FIG. 7.

Following this operation, the sequence of “on/off” firing instructionsis then rearranged to accommodate the physical spacing between thearrays. This is necessary to assure that the proper firing instructiondata corresponding to a given area of the substrate to be patternedarrives at the initial array and at each downstream array at the exacttime at which that given substrate area passes under the proper array.This is accomplished by interleaving the array data and insertingsynthetic “off” data for downstream arrays at pattern start and forupstream arrays at pattern end, to effectively sequence and delay thearrival of pattern data to the downstream arrays until the substrate hashad the opportunity to move into position under the downstream arrays.The data exiting this interleaving operation is in the form of a serialbit stream comprising, for a given pattern cycle, one bit per jet(indicating whether the jet should fire during this cycle) for eachrespective jet in each array, as indicated in Data Format A3 of FIG. 7.

This serial bit stream is then fed to a data distributor which, for each“start pattern cycle” pulse received from the registration controlsystem (indicating a new pattern line is to begin), simply counts theproper number of bits corresponding to the number of jets in a givenarray, in the sequence such bits are received from the interleavingoperation. When the proper number of bits necessary to comprise firinginstructions for that entire array has been counted, that set of bits issent, in serial form, to the proper array for further processing, asdescribed below, and the counting procedure is begun again for the nextarray involved in the patterning operation. Each array, in a rotatingsequence, is sent data in similar fashion for a given pattern line, andthe process is repeated at each “start patterning/cycle” pulse until thepatterning of the substrate is completed.

Associated with each array is an electronically encoded value for theactual firing time to be used by that array for all patterning cyclesassociated with a given pattern. It is important to note that, whilethis “duration” value may vary from array to array, for a given array itis constrained to be uniform, and cannot vary from jet to jet or frompatterning cycle to patterning cycle. Therefore, if any jets in a givenarray must fire during a given patterning cycle, all such firing jetsmust fire for the same period of time. This “duration” value issuperimposed upon the “fire/don't fire” single-bit data received fromthe pattern data distribution operation and is temporarily stored in oneor more shift registers individually associated with each array. After apredetermined delay to allow time for the shift registers to fill, thedata is sent simultaneously to the respective valves associated with thediverting streams of air at each dye jet position along the array.

The control system of the present invention, as depicted in FIGS. 8through 11, may be most easily described by considering the system asessentially comprising three separate data storage and allocationsystems (a firing time converter, which incorporates a memory, a“stagger” memory, and a “gatling” memory) operating in a serialsequence. These systems are schematically depicted in FIG. 8, whichrepresents an overview of the control system of the present invention asapplied to a patterning device disclosed above. FIG. 11 schematicallydepicts representative data formats at the process stages indicated inFIG. 8. Each array is associated with a respective firing time converterand “stagger” memory, followed by a separate “gatling” memory, arrangedin tandem. Each of these major elements will be discussed in turn.

As shown in FIG. 8, the raw pattern data is sent as prompted by the“start pattern cycle” pulse received from the substrate motion sensor.This sensor merely generates a pulse each time a substrate conveyormoves the substrate a predetermined linear distance (e.g., one-twentiethof an inch) along the path under the patterning arrays. (Note that, inthe system of the prior art, the “start pattern cycle” pulse wasreceived from the registration control system; in the novel systemdescribed herein, a separate registration control system is not needed.)The same “start pattern cycle” pulse is simultaneously sent to eacharray, for reasons which will be explained below.

The raw patterning data is in the form of a sequence of pixel codes,with one such code specifying, for each pattern line, the dye jetresponse for a given dye jet position on each and every array, i.e.,each pixel code controls the response of eight separate dye jets (oneper array) with respect to a single pattern line. As discussed above,the pixel codes merely define those distinct areas of the pattern whichmay be assigned a different color. The data is preferably arranged instrict sequence, with data for applicators 1-480 for the first patternline being first in the series, followed by data for applicators 1-480for the second pattern line, etc., as depicted by Data Format B1 of FIG.11. The complete serial stream of such pixel codes is sent, in identicalform and without any array-specific allocation, to a firing timeconverter/memory associated with each respective array for conversion ofthe pixel codes into firing times This stream of pixel codes preferablycomprises a sufficient number of codes to provide an individual code foreach dye jet position across the substrate for each pattern line in theoverall pattern. Assuming eight arrays of 480 applicators each, apattern line of 0.05 inch (1.27 mm) in width (measured along thesubstrate path), and an overall pattern which is 60 inches (152.4 cm) inlength (i.e., measured along the substrate path), this would require araw pattern data stream comprised of 576,000 separate codes.

Comprising each firing time converter is a look-up table having asufficient number of addresses so that each possible address codeforming the serial stream of pattern data may be assigned a uniqueaddress in the look-up table At each address within the look-up table isa byte representing a relative firing time or dye contact time, which,assuming an eight bit address code is used to form the raw pattern data,can be zero or one of 255 different discrete time values correspondingto the relative amount of time the dye jet in question is to remain“on.”

Accordingly, for each eight bit byte of pixel data, one of 256 differentfiring times (including a firing time of zero) is defined for eachspecific jet location one each and every array. Jet identity isdetermined by the relative position of the address code within theserial stream of pattern data and by the information pre-loaded into thelook-up table, which information specifies in which arrays a given jetposition fires, and for what length of time. (If desirable, dataindividually comprised of two or more bytes, specifying, e.g., one of65,536 different firing times or other patterning parameter levels maybe used in accordance with the teachings herein, with appropriatemodifications to the hardware.) The result is sent, in Data Format B2(see FIG. 11), to the “stagger” memory associated with the given array.At this point, no attempt has been made to compensate for the physicalspacing between arrays and jets, or to group and hold the data forsending to the actual air valves associated with each dye jet.

Compensation for the physical spacing between arrays may be bestexplained with reference to FIGS. 9A and 9B, which functionally describethe individual stagger memories for various arrays in greater detail.

The “stagger” memory operates on the firing time data produced by thelook-up tables and performs two principal functions: (1) the serial datastream from the look-up table, representing firing times, is grouped andallocated to the appropriate arrays on the patterning machine and (2)“non-operative” data is added to the respective pattern data for eacharray to inhibit, at start-up and for a pre-determined interval which isspecific to that particular array, the reading of the pattern data inorder to compensate for the elapsed time during which the specificportion of the substrate to be patterned with that pattern data ismoving from array to array.

The “stagger” memory operates as follows. The firing time data is sentto an individual random access memory (RAM) associated with each of theeight arrays. Although either static or dynamic RAM's may be used,static RAM's have been found to be preferred because of increased speed.At each array, the data is written to the RAM in the order in which itwas sent from the look-up table, thereby preserving the jet and arrayidentity of the individual firing times. Each RAM preferably hassufficient capacity to hold firing time information for the total numberof pattern lines extending from the first to the eighth array (assumedto be fourteen hundred for purposes of discussion) for each jet in itsrespective array. In the discussion which follows, it may be helpful toconsider the fourteen hundred pattern lines as being arranged in sevengroups of two hundred pattern lines each (to correspond with the assumedinter-array spacing).

The RAM's are both written to and read from in a unidirectionalrepeating cycle, with all “read” pointers being collectively initializedand “lock-stepped” so that corresponding address locations in all RAM'sfor all arrays are read simultaneously. Associated with each RAM is apredetermined offset value which represents the number of sequentialmemory address values separating the “write” pointer used to insert thedata into the memory addresses and the “read” pointer used to read thedata from the RAM addresses, thereby “staggering” in time the respectiveread and write operations for a given memory address.

In configurations where the jets associated with an array or color barare not in a straight line across the substrate path, as is the case forthe staggered jets of the patterning device of FIGS. 10 through 11A,once the “read” pointer is calculated, it must be adjusted, on ajet-by-jet basis as data is being read from the array, to compensate forthe jet-to-jet spacing (i.e., the offset) in the direction of substratemotion. Thus, for example, if the jets are offset in the substratedirection by: Jet Pattern line offset  1 0 lines  2 2 lines  3 4 lines 4 6 lines  5 8 lines  6 10 lines  7 12 lines  8 14 lines  9 0 lines 102 lines 11, etc. 4 lines, etc.

Then the “read” pointer would be adjusted by: Jet Data line offset  1 0 2 −2  3 −4  4 −6  5 −8  6 −10  7 −12  8 −14  9 0 10 −2 11, etc. −4,etc.

The negative sign indicates the offset must be moved to previous linesin the stagger memory array. Therefore, after jet 1 prints and thesubstrate moves two lines, jet 2 prints adjacent to the pixel printed byjet 1. Referencing FIG. 23A, if the data for jet 1 is to be read fromline 205, then the data for jet 2 will be read from line 203.

In this example, the write address and read address increment.Alternatively, and perhaps advantageously, the address counters can bedecremented. By so doing, the adjustments can be made as positive umbers(i.e., add, rather than subtract, the adjustment to the read address.This alternative simplifies the hardware implementation.

As depicted on the left hand side of FIG. 9A, the RAM offset value forthe first array is zero, i.e., the “read pattern data” operation isinitiated at the same memory address as the “write pattern data”operation, with no offset. The offset for the second array, however, isshown as being two hundred, which number is equal to the number ofpattern lines or pattern cycles (as well as the corresponding number ofread or write cycles) needed to span the distance physically separatingthe first array from the second array, as measured along the path of thesubstrate in units of pattern lines. As depicted, the “read pattern”pointer, initialized at the first memory address location, is found twohundred address locations “above” or “earlier” than the “write” pointer.Accordingly, beginning the “read” operation at a memory address locationwhich lags the “write” operation by two hundred consecutive locationseffectively delays the reading of the written data by two hundredpattern cycles to correspond to—and compensate for—the physical spacingbetween the first and second array. To avoid using “dummy” data for the“read” operation until the “read” pointer catches up with the firstaddress written to by the “write” pointer, a “read inhibit” proceduremay be used. Such procedure would only be necessary at the beginning andend of a pattern. Alternatively, data representing zero firing time canbe loaded in the RAM's in the appropriate address locations so that the“read” operation, although enabled, reads data which disables the jetsduring such times.

The right hand side of FIG. 9A depicts the stagger memory for the eightharray. As with all other arrays, the “read” pointer has been initializedto the first memory address in the RAM. The “write” pointer, shown atits initialized memory address location, leads the “read” pointer by anaddress difference equivalent to fourteen hundred pattern lines(assuming seven intervening arrays and a uniform inter-array spacing oftwo hundred pattern lines).

FIG. 9B depicts the stagger memories of FIG. 9A exactly two hundredpattern cycles later, i.e., after the data for two hundred pattern lineshave been read. The “read” and “write” pointers associated with Array 1are still together, but have moved “down” two hundred memory addresslocations and are now reading and writing the firing time dataassociated with the first line of the second group of two hundredpattern lines in the RAM.

The “read” and “write” pointers associated with Array 2 are stillseparated by an offset corresponding to the physical spacing betweenArray 1 and Array 2, as measured in units of pattern lines. Looking atthe pointers associated with Array 8, the “read” pointer is positionedto read the first line of firing time data from the second group of twohundred pattern lines, while the “write” pointer is positioned to writenew firing time data into RAM addresses which will be read only afterthe existing fourteen hundred pattern lines in the RAM are read. It istherefore apparent the “read” pointer is specifying firing time datawhich was written fourteen hundred pattern cycles previously.

The storage registers associated with each array's stagger memory storethe firing time data for the pattern line to be dyed by that respectivearray in that pattern cycle until prompted by a pulse from the substratetransducer indicating the substrate has traveled a distance equal to thewidth of one pattern line. At that time, the firing time data, in DataFormat B3 (see FIG. 11), is sent to the “gatling” memory for processingas indicated below, and firing time data for the next pattern line isforwarded to the stagger memory for processing as described above.

FIG. 10 depicts a “gatling” memory module for one array. For thepatterning device depicted in FIG. 1, eight configurations of the typeshown in FIG. 10 would be necessary, one for each array. In a preferredembodiment, all would be driven by a common clock and counter. Thegatling memory performs two principal functions: (1) the serial streamof encoded firing times is converted to individual strings of logical(i.e., “on” or “off”) firing commands, the length of each respective“on” string reflecting the value of the corresponding encoded firingtime, and (2) these commands are quickly and efficiently allocated tothe appropriate applicators.

As depicted in FIG. 10, associated with each array is a set of dedicatedfirst in-first out memory modules (each of which will be hereinafterreferred to as a “FIFO”). An essential characteristic of the FIFO isthat data is read out of the FIFO in precisely the same order orsequence in which the data was written into the FIFO. In the exemplaryembodiment described herein, the set of FIFO modules must have acollective capacity sufficient to store one byte (i.e., eight bits,equal to the size of the address codes comprising the original patterndata) of data for each of the four hundred eighty diverting air valvesin the array. For purposes of explanation, it will be assumed that eachof the two FIFO's shown can accommodate two hundred forty bytes of data.

Each FIFO has its input connected to the sequential loader and itsoutput connected to an individual comparator. A counter is configured tosend an eight bit incrementing count to each of the comparators inresponse to a pulse from a “gatling” clock. The “gatling” clock is alsoconnected to each FIFO, and can thus synchronize the initiation ofoperations involving both the FIFO's and the respective comparatorsassociated with each FIFO. If the smallest increment of time on which“firing time” is based is to be different from array to array,independent clocks and counters may be associated with each such array.Preferably, the output from each comparator may be operably connected toa respective shift register/latch combination, which serves to storetemporarily the comparator output data before it is sent to therespective array, as described in more detail below. Each comparatoroutput is also directed to a common detector, the function of whichshall be discussed below. As indicated in FIG. 10, a reset pulse fromthe detector is sent to both the “gatling” clock and the counter at theconclusion of each pattern cycle, as will be explained below.

In response to the transducer pulse, the respective stagger memories foreach array are read in sequence and the data is fed to an array-specificsequential loader, as depicted in FIG. 10. The sequential loader sendsthe first group of two hundred forty bytes of data received to a firstFIFO and the second group of two hundred forty bytes of data to a secondFIFO. Similar operations are performed simultaneously at othersequential loaders associated with other arrays. Each byte represents arelative firing time or dye contact time (or, more accurately, anelapsed diverting air stream interruption time) for an individual jet inthe array. After each of the FIFO's for each array are loaded, they aresimultaneously sent a series of pulses from the “gatling” clock, eachpulse prompting each FIFO to send a byte of data (comprised of eightbits), in the same sequence in which the bytes were sent to the FIFO bythe sequential loader, to its respective individual comparator. ThisFIFO “firing time” data byte is one of two separate inputs received bythe comparator, the second input being a byte sent from a single countercommon to all FIFOs associated with every array. This common counterbyte is sent in response to the same gatling clock pulse which promptedthe FIFO data, and serves as a clock for measuring elapsed time from theonset of the dye stream striking the substrate for this pattern cycle.At each pulse from the gatling clock, a new byte of data is releasedfrom each FIFO and sent to its respective comparator.

At each comparator, the eight bit “elapsed time” counter value iscompared with the value of the eight bit “firing time” byte sent by theFIFO. The result of this comparison is a single “fire/no fire command”bit sent to the shift register as well as the detector. If the FIFOvalue is greater than the counter value, indicating the desired firingtime as specified by the pattern data is greater than the elapsed firingtime as specified by the counter, the comparator output bit is a logical“one” (interpreted by the array applicators as a “fire” command)Otherwise, the comparator output bit is a logical “zero” (interpreted bythe array applicators as a “no fire” or “cease fire” command) At thenext gatling clock pulse, the next byte of firing time data in each FIFO(corresponding to the next individual jet along the array) is sent tothe respective comparator, where it is compared with the same countervalue. Each comparator compares the value of the firing time dataforwarded by its respective FIFO to the value of the counter andgenerates a “fire/no fire” command in the form of a logical one orlogical zero, as appropriate, for transmission to the shift register andthe detector.

This process is repeated until all two hundred forty “firing time” byteshave been read from the FIFO's and have been compared with the “elapsedfiring time” value indicated by the counter. At this time the shiftregister, which now contains a serial string of two hundred fortylogical ones and zeros corresponding to individual firing commands,forwards these firing commands in parallel format to a latch. The latchserves to transfer, in parallel, the firing commands from the shiftregister to the individual air valves associated with the array dyeapplicators at the same time the shift register accepts a fresh set oftwo hundred forty firing commands for subsequent forwarding to thelatch. Each time the shift register forwards its contents to the latch(in response to a clock pulse), the counter value is incremented.Following this transfer, the counter value is incremented by one timeunit and the process is repeated, with all two hundred forty bytes of“firing time” data in each FIFO being reexamined and transformed intotwo hundred forty single bit “fire/no fire” commands, in sequence, bythe comparator using the newly incremented value of “elapsed time”supplied by the counter. While, in a preferred embodiment, the serialfiring commands may be converted to, and stored in, a parallel format bythe shift register/latch combination disclosed herein, it is foreseenthat various alternative techniques for directing the serial stream offiring commands to the appropriate applicators may be employed, perhapswithout converting said commands to a true parallel format.

The above process, involving the sequential comparison of each FIFO'sentire capacity of firing time data with each incremented “elapsed time”value generated by the counter, is repeated until the detectordetermines that all comparator outputs for that array are a logical“zero.” This indicates that, for all jets in the array, no desiredfiring time (represented by the FIFO values) for any jet in the arrayexceeds the elapsed time then indicated by the counter. When thiscondition is sensed by the comparator, it indicates that, for thatpattern line and that array, all required patterning has occurred.Accordingly, the detector sends “reset” pulses to both the counter andto the gatling clock. The gatling module then waits for the nextsubstrate transducer pulse to prompt the transmission and loading offiring time data for the next pattern line by the sequential loader intothe FIFO's, and the reiterative reading/comparing process is repeated asdescribed above.

In a preferred embodiment, the gatling memory for each array mayactually consist of two separate and identical FIFO's which mayalternately be connected to the array valves. In this way, while dataare being read out and compared in one gatling memory, the data for thenext pattern line may be loaded into the FIFO's associated with thealternate gatling memory, thereby eliminating any data loading delayswhich might otherwise be present if only one gatling memory per arraywere used. It should be apparent that the number of individual FIFO'smay be appropriately modified to accommodate a greater or lesser numberof dye jets in an array.

FIG. 12 depicts an optional memory, to be associated with each array,which may be used when maximum pattern definition is desired Thismemory, which may take the form of a static RAM, functions in a “tuning”or “trimming” capacity to compensate, in precise fashion, for smallvariations in the response time or dye flow characteristics of theindividual applicators. This is achieved by means of a look-up tableembodied in the RAM which associates, for each applicator in a givenarray, and, if desired, for each possible firing time associated witheach such applicator, an individual factor which increases or decreasesthe firing time dictated by the pattern data by an amount necessary tocause all applicators in a given array to deliver substantially the samequantity of dye onto the substrate in response to the same pattern datafiring instructions.

As explained above, the time required to activate a valve is known asfiring time. Firing time typically comprises of a portion of a machinecycle. Machine cycle is defined as the amount of time which is requiredfor an electrical device such as a valve to perform its intendedfunction. Typically, there is usually a small amount of dead timebetween firing times to allow the valves to turn off. In a contiguousvalve system, there is no dead time between firing time cycles with thefiring time equivalent to the machine cycle. With systems of this type,valves must be turned on and off in accordance with pattern data.

In the case where one or more valves are already activated, excessenergy may be dissipated in those valves. In order to save energy, andavoid unnecessary stress on the valves, one can input the pattern datafor each of a series of valves, then compare that digital valveactivation data in a one to one correspondence to the digital valveactivation data that was inputted to that same series of valves in theprevious machine cycle. If a particular valve was turned on in theprevious machine cycle, then this valve will not be applied with voltagefor a percentage of the valve's machine cycle time. The specifictechnique used to implement this process is described below.

FIG. 27 shows a contiguous valve control in which each valve iscontrolled by a single control line. The firing time of each valve isinitiated by activating a control line associated with a particularvalve for a pre-determined period of time. In a contiguous valve system,the firing time and machine cycle are synonymous. Solenoid valves thatare already activated dissipate excess energy in the form of heat whichcan result in damage to the solenoid valves. In the beginning of eachmachine cycle, valves may be turned on and off in accordance withcomputer pattern data.

An excellent example of this type of technology is the patternapplication of dye on a substrate wherein streams of dye are selectivelydirected onto the substrate in accordance with pattern information. Eachindividual dye stream is controlled by a solenoid valve. Therefore, forintricate patterns, the number of solenoids utilized can be extensive.The solenoid valves that are typically used in the above applicationnormally operate at fifteen (15) volts. By increasing the voltage to 100volts for a short period of time, just as the solenoid valve isactivated, the time required to activate the valve is reducedsubstantially. This technique works well, however, this vast increase involtage also results in significant power loss in the electricalconductor extending between the power source and the plurality ofsolenoid valves. The voltage loss in the electrical conductor isdirectly proportional to the number of valves activated. Therefore, whenjust a few solenoid valves are activated, the response time issignificantly shorter then when a large number of valves are activated.The solution to the problem of voltage drop due to load variance issolved by anticipating the load and supplying additional energy bylengthening the time energy is applied. The electrical componentspresented in this Application are solenoid valves, however, relays,coils, resistors, and any other type of electrical component thatoperates as a voltage load may be utilized with this technology. Inaddition, any type of solenoid valve may be utilized with the fifteenvolt solenoid valve illustrated as a non-limiting example.

An example of means of automatically and electronically changing fromone set of pattern data to another is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.4,170,883, issued Oct. 16, 1979, which is hereby incorporated byreference. Other commonly assigned patents which relate to patterningsubstrate by utilizing the activation of valves include U.S. Pat. No.5,208,592 issued May 4, 1993, which is hereby incorporated by reference;U.S. Pat. No. 5,140,686 issued Aug. 18, 1992, which is herebyincorporated by reference; U.S. Pat. No. 5,136,520 issued Aug. 4, 1992,which is hereby incorporated by reference; U.S. Pat. No. 4,984,169issued Jan. 8, 1991, which is hereby incorporated by reference; U.S.Pat. No. 5,142,481 issued Aug. 25, 1992, which is hereby incorporated byreference; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,128,876 issued Jul. 7, 1992, which ishereby incorporated by reference.

As shown in FIG. 27, serial data is inputted into a current shiftregister 30 by means of a data input 32. A non-limiting example ofcurrent shift registers of this type would include 74HC4094. This datais actually sequentially clocked into this register by means of clockline 34. Data input line 32 is electrically connected to data inputterminal 36 of current shift register 30. Clock line 34 is electricallyconnected to clock input terminal 38 of current shift register 30. Arepresentative clock pulse that can be found on clock line 34 ispictorially represented by numeral 41 in FIG. 28 and numeral 44 in FIG.29. A data input voltage pulse that can be found on data input 32 ispictorially represented by numerals 42 in FIG. 2 and numeral 45 in FIG.3. Although, there can be any number of output terminals associated withcurrent register 30, in a preferred embodiment there are eight outputterminals represented as Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4, Q5, Q6, Q7 and Q8 designated bynumerals 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, and 57, respectively. Outputterminals 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, and 57 of current register 30 areelectrically connected to one of two inputs of a series of AND gatesnumerically designated as 26, 24, 22, 20, 18, 16, 14 and 12,respectively. A non-limiting example of AND gates of this type wouldinclude 74H08. The valve activation data leaves current register 30 bymeans of serial output S02 designated by numeral 60 which iselectrically connected to data input terminal 62 of a previous shiftregister as generally indicated by numeral 65. A nonlimiting example ofa shift register of this type is 74HC4094. This serial data is clockedinto previous register 65 by means of electrical connection betweenclock line 34 and clock input terminal 67. Once again, the clock voltagepulse representations are indicated by numerals 41 and 44 on FIGS. 28and 29, respectively, and the data shift in voltage pulses are indicatedby numerals 42 and 45 on FIGS. 28 and 29, respectively. The preferredembodiment of previous shift register 65 also has eight outputterminals. Output terminal Q1 is designated by numeral 70, outputterminal Q2 is designated by numeral 71, output terminal Q3 isdesignated by numeral 72, output numeral Q4 is designated by numeral 73,output terminal Q5 is designated by numeral 74, output terminal Q6 isdesignated by numeral 75, output terminal Q7 is designated by numeral76, and output terminal Q8 is designated by numeral 77. These outputlines 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76 and 77 are electrically connected toone of two inputs to a series of preferably eight NAND gates numericallydesignated as 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86 and 87, respectively. Anon-limiting example of NAND gates 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, and 87 atthis type would include 74HC00. The remaining second input connectionsto NAND gates 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, and 87 are connected to blockline 90. Block line 90 is a voltage pulse which is on for a percentageof time of the total time in which the high voltage pulse is applied tothe valve. As shown in FIG. 28 the high voltage pulse is designated bynumeral 92. In FIG. 29he high voltage pulse is designated by numeral 93.A block voltage pulse is preferably a significant period of time inrelation to the total period of time in which the high voltage pulse isapplied to the valve. In the preferred embodiment the high voltage pulseis in a high state for 125 microseconds while the block voltage pulse isactivated in a high state for 100 microseconds. Block voltage pulse isshown in FIG. 28 as numeral 94 and is shown in FIG. 29 as numeral 95.

Therefore, the output of NAND gates 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86 and 87will always be in a digital “one” state unless there is a positive blockvoltage pulse 94, 95 at the same time the output terminal of either 70,71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76 or 77 of previous register 75 is in a digital“one” state or high state. Otherwise, in all remaining conditions of theoutput of NAND gates 80 through 87 will be in a digital “one” state. Theoutputs from NAND gates 80 through 87 are inputted to respective ANDgates 26, 24, 22, 20, 18, 16, 14 and 12 in conjunction with the digitaloutput terminals 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56 and 57. The output from ANDgates 26, 24, 22, 20, 18, 16, 14 and 12 are outputted to control lines27, 25, 23, 21, 19, 17, 15 and 13, respectively. These control linesactuate the valves.

Therefore, according to FIG. 28 the valve drive will be continuallyactivated except when there is a block voltage pulse 94 in conjunctionwith a digital “one” state on one of the output terminals 70 through 77.This will result in voltage pulse 98 in which the respective valve drivewill be off for the initial 100 microseconds and then on for the last 25seconds of a total of 125 microsecond activation time. This is shown byhigh voltage 92, block voltage 94 and valve drive voltage 98,respectively, in FIG. 28.

FIG. 29 represents the condition when there are no digital “one” statespresent on any one of outputs 70 through 77 of previous shift register65. The valve drive voltage 99 will then be on continually and therewill not be a period of time in which the valve drive voltage 99 will beturned off. It is because high voltage pulse 93 is turning on the valvefor the first time and this valve was not on during the previous machinecycle.

It should be noted that, alternatively, the foregoing logic can beimplemented by using programmable logic devices in place of the discretedevices discussed above.

Process Detailed Discussion

According to one contemplated practice, the present process andapparatus may be used in dyeing a dye accepting substrate in either apattern or solid shade by dispensing a dye using a plurality of dye jetsin combination with the selective application of various chemical agentsthat may enhance the definition of patterned designs across thesubstrate. More particularly, the controlled application of suchchemical agents in relation to the application of dye may be used tocurtail color migration of dye between selected zones across thesubstrate thereby sharpening boundaries between patterned zones. The useof such containment may be useful in both solid colored as well aspatterned substrates. In the case of solid shades, deeper shading isachieved across the entire surface. In the case of patterned substratessuch practices offer the ability to deliberately and selectivelyemphasize certain pattern areas or elements, creating desirable visualeffects.

It is common to define a textile pattern in terms of pixels, andindividual dyes, or combinations of dyes, are assigned to each pixel inorder to impart the desired color to that corresponding pixel orpixel-sized area on the substrate. The application of such dyes tospecific pixels is achieved through the use of many individual dye jets,mounted along the length of the various color bars (also referred to asapplication bars) that are positioned in spaced, parallel relationacross the path of the moving substrate to be patterned. Each jet in agiven color bar is supplied with dye from the same dye reservoir, withdifferent color bars being supplied from different reservoirs, typicallycontaining different dyes. By generating jet actuation instructions thataccommodate the position of the jet along the length of the color barand the position of the color bar relative to the position of the targetpixel on the moving substrate, any available dye from any color bar maybe applied to any pixel within the pattern area on the substrate, as maybe required by the specific pattern being reproduced.

In the past, various chemical agents sometimes have been applied to thesubstrate using techniques such as baths, pads, sprayers, or otherappropriate devices. Using such devices, surfactants or other dyemigration modifying agents have been applied substantially uniformly tothe surface of the substrate prior to the patterning step of selectivelyapplying dyes in accordance with pattern information, as is set forthin, for example, commonly-assigned U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,740,214 and4,808,191 both of which are incorporated by reference as if fully setforth herein.

It is contemplated that the application of dye-migration-limiting agentsmay be utilized in combination with controlled dye application across asubstrate to effect enhanced color depth and pattern definition. Theapplied dye may be rapidly fixed across the substrate to preventblurring or fading of the developed pattern or depth of shade. Theselective application of dye-migration-controlling agents may be carriedout in registration with, or otherwise in relation to, dye applicationsuch that the migration or diffusion characteristics of the dispenseddye on the substrate may be curtailed in specific, predetermined areasof the pattern to provide patterned products having a variety of visualeffects thereby providing a wide variety of aesthetic advantages. Ifdesired, a dye pattern (or solid shade) may be positionally fixed acrossa textile substrate by the dual complementary mechanisms of chemicalmigration controlling agents in combination with RF (radio frequency)heating to arrest dye migration through fixation of applied dye and dyeblends. The use of such RF heating thus further enhances patterndefinition.

As illustrated schematically in FIG. 30 a substrate 25 is passed beneathan arrangement of application bars 15 for pixel-wise placement of dyeand/or migration-controlling agents. After being transported underapplication bars 15 in a manner that provides for the accuratepixel-wise placement of dye-migration-controlling agents and dye inprecisely-defined areas of the substrate, the patterned substrate 25Amay be passed through other, conventional dyeing-related steps such asdrying, fixing, etc. For example, the pattern-dyed, textile material maybe passed through an RF heater as will be described further hereinafter,to fix patches of discrete or blended dyes thereon. Included in FIG. 30are block representations of computer system 50 associated withelectronic control system 52, electronic registration system 54, androtary pulse generator or similar transducer 56. The collectiveoperation of these systems results in the generation of individual“on/off” actuation commands that control the flow of fluid from theapplication bars to the substrate in a controlled manner.

It is contemplated that textile materials may be patterned or dyed insolid shades using a wide variety of natural or synthetic dyes,including acid dyes, basic dyes, reactive dyes, direct dyes, dispersedyes, mordant dyes, or pigments, depending upon the application and thefiber content of the substrate to be dyed. The teachings herein areapplicable to the use of a broad range of such dyes, as well as a broadrange of textile materials. Textile materials which can be dyed by meansof the present invention include knitted, woven, and non-woven textilematerials, tufted materials, bonded materials and the like. Typically,but not necessarily, such textile materials will include a pile surface.Such textile materials may include floor coverings (e.g., carpets, rugs,carpet tiles, floor mats, etc.), drapery fabrics, upholstery fabrics(including automotive upholstery fabrics), and the like. Such textilematerials can be formed of natural or synthetic fibers, such aspolyester, nylon, wool, cotton and acrylic, as well as textile materialscontaining mixtures of such natural or synthetic fibers, or combinationsthereof.

According to a first contemplated practice, at one of the first orsecond application bars, a “leveler” such as a surfactant of anioniccharacter as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,110,367 to Papalos(incorporated by reference) is applied either uniformly or in a desiredpattern across the substrate 25. The character of the leveler ispreferably neutral or of the same ionic character as the dye. Mostpreferably, the leveler is of the same ionic character to the dyesolution and is of counter-ionic character to the substrate. Thus, ifthe substrate is nylon which is generally neutral or cationic incharacter, the leveler will most preferably be anionic in character. Byway of example only, and not limitation, various contemplatedsurfactants of anionic character include mixed fatty alcohol sodiumsulfates, alkyl sulfonates, alkyldiaryl sulfonates, sulfonated sulphonesdialkyl sulfosuccinates, alkane or alkene-amido-benzene-sulphonics,monosulfonated alkylphenoxy glycerol, alkyl-substituted diphenyl ethersulfonates, and sulfonated alkylphenoxy acetones. It is alsocontemplated that corresponding sulfate or phosphate compounds may beused in place of any of the aforementioned sulfonated compounds.Nonionic aliphatics may also be utilized if desired. One anionicsurfactant which is believed to be particularly useful is believed to bea sulfonate dispersion available under the trade designation TANAPURE®AC from Bayer Corporation Industrial Chemicals Division having a placeof business in Pittsburgh, Pa., USA. Of course, the leveler may also beapplied to the substrate by other techniques such as padding, spraying,dip coating, or the like thereby avoiding the need to use an applicationbar.

At one of the application bars, a migration limiting composition may beapplied. According to the preferred practice of the invention, themigration limiting composition is counter-ionic to the dye. In the eventthat the leveler is ionic in character, the migration limitingcomposition is preferably counter-ionic to the leveler. The applicationof the migration limiting composition may be either uniform across azone where migration is to be limited or may be applied as a traceoutline to define a boundary for migration prevention. Coverage by themigration limiting composition across a zone to be dyed facilitates thedevelopment of high relief coloration at that zone. It is alsocontemplated that the migration limiting composition may be appliedeither selectively or uniformly across the substrate with or without aleveler.

As will be appreciated, the application of a migration limitingcomposition of counter-acting character to a previously applied levelercomposition tends to at least partially override the effects of theleveler at the location where the migration limiting composition isapplied. Thus, even if a substrate is treated uniformly with a levelerat a preliminary step, localized zones of reduced migration may beestablished across the substrate by the patterned application ofeffective amounts of a counter-acting migration limiting composition.

According to one contemplated practice, the migration limitingcomposition includes a component which is counter-ionic to a componentin the dye so as to react with the dye. Thus, according to the preferredpractice, one of the dye or the migration limiting composition includesa cationic component while the other contains an anionic component. Ifdesired, the dye may also include a constituent to enhance the reactionbetween the counter-ionic components of the dye and the migrationlimiting composition. Preferably the reactive ionic component in atleast one of the migration limiting composition or the dye solutionincludes an ionic polymeric material, e.g., a material having amolecular weight of at least about 5,000, preferably at least about10,000. More preferably, both the dye and the migration limitingcomposition include reactive polymeric materials having a molecularweight of at least about 5000 (more preferably at least about 10,000).According to the most preferred contemplated practice, both the dye andthe migration limiting composition include anionic reactive polymericmaterials having a molecular weight of at least about 5000 (morepreferably at least about 10,000). Anionic polymeric constituents whichare contemplated include biopolysaccharides such as xanthan gum, acrylicacid containing polymers, sodium alginate and the like. Cationicpolymeric constituents include polyacrylamide copolymers having cationicgroups, e.g., polyacrylamide copolymers containing primary, secondaryand tertiary amines, both quaternized and non-quaternized. Non-polymericanionic constituents include anionic surfactants such as sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate and the like. Non-polymeric cationic constituentsinclude cationic surfactants such as didecyl dimethyl ammonium chlorideand the like.

In a process wherein the dye and the migration limiting compositioninclude reactive counter-ionic components, the cationic component (fromone of the dye solution or migration limiting composition) and theanionic component (from the other of the dye solution or migrationlimiting agent) desirably come into contact with each other when the dyesolution is applied to the textile material. An ionic interaction thenoccurs effectively controlling undesired migration of the dye.

The desired interaction of the cationic component with the anioniccomponent at zones where migration is to be limited may conveniently beaccomplished by applying one of the ionic components to the textilematerial in the form of the migration limiting composition carriedwithin an aqueous solution (which is disposed in patterned relationacross the substrate relative to the migration promoting agent) prior toapplication of the dye solution in the desired pattern and then applyingthe corresponding counter-ionic material as a component of the dyesolution in registry with the migration limiting agent. Thus if thecationic component is first applied to the textile material as acomponent of the migration limiting agent, the anionic component may beapplied as a component of the dye solution. Similarly, if the anioniccomponent is first applied to the textile material as a component of theaqueous solution, the cationic component may be applied as a componentof the dye solution. If desired, jet applicators may be used to applydye and migration limiting composition substantially in registry in apattern across the substrate.

As mentioned above, a migration limiting composition containing one ofthe reactive ionic components is preferably applied to the textilematerial at zones where dye is to be contained prior to application ofthe dye solution. This ionic component, i.e., either the anioniccomponent or cationic component, may typically be provided in thesolution in an amount of from about 0.1 percent to about 10 percent,preferably from about 0.2 to about 5 percent, by weight based upon theweight of the aqueous solution. A wide range of additional textiledyeing pretreatment chemicals may also optionally be provided in theaqueous solution so long as those chemicals do not interfere with anyskin forming interaction. Examples include, for instance, wettingagents, buffers, etc. Ideally the pH of the aqueous solution may be fromabout 3 to about 9, although the pH is not critical.

The amount of solution carrying the migration limiting compositionapplied to the textile material may vary widely from an amountsufficient to thoroughly saturate the textile material to an amount thatwill only barely moisten the textile material. The amount of cationic oranionic component provided may vary widely depending upon the molecularweight, number of ionic groups, etc. In general the amount of migrationlimiting composition applied may be from about 1 percent to about 300percent, preferably about 5 percent to about 200 percent and mostpreferably about 50 percent to about 150 percent by weight based uponthe weight of the textile material. After application of the migrationlimiting composition in a desired pattern, the textile material may bedried prior to application of the dye solution or alternatively the dyesolution may be applied directly without prior drying of the textilematerial.

Of course, it is to be understood that alternative migration limitingcompositions may be applied in patterned relation across the substrate.By way of example only, and not limitation, it is contemplated that aprocess as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,808,191 (incorporated byreference) may be used wherein an aqueous solution of a metal salthaving a charge of +2 or more is applied to the substrate after which anaqueous dye solution containing dye and thickening agent which will forma complex with the previously applied metal salt is applied in a patternacross the substrate. The complex coordinating with the dye therebyinhibits migration of the dye substantially beyond the boundaries of thepattern. It is believed that in such a process that as a result of thepretreatment of the textile material to be dyed the metal salt binds tothe fibers of the textile material, such that when the aqueousdye-thickener solution is subsequently applied, according to a desiredpattern, the thickener forms a complex with the “fixed” metal and thecomplex coordinates with the dye. As a result, the dye molecules arestably bound, by virtue of the textile substrate-metal-thickener-dyecomplex, and dye migration by either of the diffusion or capillaryaction routes is inhibited. Potentially preferred metal salts includethose of aluminum, zirconium, hafnium, boron, magnesium, calcium, zinc,strontium, barium, gallium and beryllium.

According to the potentially preferred practice, in the event that suchmigration limiting compositions are used, it is contemplated that theyare selectively applied in a patterned arrangement across the substrateat zones where migration limitation yielding high relief is desiredrather than being dispensed across the entire substrate as taught in theprior art. In addition, a migration promoting agent is preferablydispensed across at least a portion of the remainder of the substratesuch that a combination of migration limitation and promotion isestablished simultaneously across the substrate, but possibly indifferent pattern areas.

It is also contemplated that other migration limiting compositions inthe form of dye fixing/receiving compositions may be selectively appliedat zones where high relief is desired. According to one contemplatedpractice, such a dye fixing/receiving composition includes a dye fixingagent and an ink receiving agent. In one embodiment, the dyefixing/receiving compound can include a compatible resin binder.Additional additives can be used with the dye fixing/receivingcomposition, such as whitening agents, antimicrobial agents, lightstabilizers/UV absorbers, and lubricants.

In one embodiment, the dye fixing agent has a molecular weight of atleast about 1000. In one embodiment, the dye fixing agent includesreactive amino compounds of highly cationic nature. One potentiallypreferred reactive amino compound is a compound having a high positivecharge density (i.e., at least one (1) milliequivalent per gram).Reactive amino compounds that can be used in the present inventioninclude compounds containing at least one primary, secondary, tertiary,or quaternary amino moiety. Additionally, the reactive amino compoundscan contain a reactive group that is capable of reacting with thetextile substrate or resin binder to form a bond thereto. Examples of areactive group include epoxide, isocyanate, vinyl sulphone, andhalo-triazine. In particular, epichlorohydrin polyamine condensationpolymer may be particularly useful.

Ink receiving agents in the dye fixing/receiving compositions which maybe useful include inorganic particles that receive the ink throughadsorbency or absorbency. In one embodiment, the particle size of theink receiving agent is equal to, or less than, about 10 microns. Inanother embodiment, the particle size of the ink receiving agent isequal to, or less than, about 3 microns. In yet another embodiment, theparticle size of the ink receiving agent is equal to, or less than,about 1 micron. Examples of contemplated ink receiving agents includesilica, silicate, calcium carbonate, aluminum oxide, aluminum hydroxide,and titanium dioxide. Bohemite alumina and silica gel may workparticularly well as the ink receiving agents in dye fixing/receivingcompositions, especially silica gel particles that have been treated tocarry a cationic charge. In the case of silica gel particles, aluminasurface coating and cationic silane surface modification may be desired.It is believed that the microporous nature of the bohemite alumina andsilica gel allow further physical entrapment of a dye/pigment, such asan anionic dye/pigment, to afford improved wash fastness. In oneembodiment, the inorganic particles have a porosity with a pore diameterfrom about 10 nm to about 200 nm.

In most formulations, the cationic charge from cationic reactive aminocompounds is much greater than the cationic charge present on theinorganic particles. Therefore the mere presence of relative minorcationic charge on the inorganic particle would not significantlyimprove the dye/substrate interaction through cationic-anionic chargeinteraction. It is the combination of highly charged reactive aminocompounds and the microporous inorganic particles that further improvesthe migration limiting character of the treated substrate.

In one embodiment, the dye fixing agent typically will comprise fromabout 0.2% to about 20% by weight of the treated textile substrate. Theink receiving agent typically will comprise from about 0.2% to about 20%by weight of the treated textile substrate. In one embodiment, the dyefixing/adsorbing composition comprises from about 1% to about 20%, byweight, of the treated textile substrate. In another embodiment, the dyefixing/adsorbing composition comprises from about 1% to about 5%, byweight, of the treated textile substrate. In another further embodiment,the dye fixing/adsorbing composition comprises from about 5% to about10%, by weight, of the treated textile substrate. Prior to placement onthe textile substrate, the dye fixing/receiving composition ispreferably in the form of a stable aqueous solution or dispersion.

As indicated, the dye fixing/adsorbing composition may be used incombination with a resin binder to limit dye migration. It iscontemplated that the resin binder will be of a character to have a goodbond with the fiber of the textile substrate. The resin binder can be athermoplastic or thermosetting polymeric binder. Such a binderpreferably has a glass transition temperature of below about 40° C. Itis also preferred that the binder be durable when subjected to washing.Examples of resin binders include non-anionic or cationic lattices, suchas ethylenevinylacetate, acrylic, urethane polymer, polyamide,polyester, and polyvinyl chloride. In one embodiment, the resin bindercomprises up to about 10% of the weight of the treated substrate.

It is believed that the dye fixing agent interacts with the ionic dyesin a charge type attraction, and that the dye fixing agent of thepresent invention typically will react with the fiber of the textilesubstrate to form a chemical bond with the textile substrate. In anembodiment where a resin binder is used, it is believed that the dyefixing agent will chemically bond with the resin binder, which bondswith the textile substrate. It is also believed that the ink receivingagent provides surface area for the ink from the patterning device tointeract with the dye fixing agent, thereby facilitating the effects ofthe dye fixing agent.

Patterned application of a dye fixing/adsorbing composition as describedabove in registry with applied dyes may provide a printed textile withexcellent color brightness and print resolution. These benefits may beparticularly pronounced for aqueous pigment ink placed on the treatedtextile substrate on a pixel by pixel basis. More particularly, anaqueous pigment ink, with a pigment to ink ratio of about 10 to 1 orgreater, by weight, of binder can be printed on a treated textilesubstrate to produce a water fast and weatherable printed image on thetreated textile. Furthermore, pigment ink with about 10%, by weight, orless of binder can be printed onto the textile substrate with atreatment of a quaternary amino compound, with or without the inorganicparticles, and provide a durable print. The quaternary amino compoundcan be secured to the textile substrate by a chemical bond, or any otherappropriate method. It is believed that the treatment swells when itreceives the aqueous ink. It is also believed that this swelling willincrease the chances of the interaction between the pigment particles ofthe ink and highly cationic and porous features of the treatment.

Concentration of dyestuff in the dye is totally dependent on the desiredcolor but, in general, may be in a range that is conventional fortextile dyeing operations, e.g. about 0.01 to about 2 percent,preferably about 0.01 to about 1.5 percent, by weight, based upon theweight of the dye solution, exclusive of the thickener. The amount ofthickener added to the aqueous dye solution is selected to provide thedesired viscosity appropriate to the particular pattern dyeing method.

In general, dyes are combined with a number of other constituents suchas thickening agents, defoamers, wetting agents, biocides, and otheradditives to arrive at the dye solution that is dispensed by thepatterning device. In general, amounts of thickener range from less than0.1 to about 3 weight percent, based on the weight of the dye solution.For drop on demand devices viscosities are preferably within the rangeof from about 800 to about 5000 centipoise, depending upon the operatingconditions (e.g., dye pressure and applicator orifice size). Note thatall viscosity values listed herein are intended to be measured by aBrookfield LVT viscometer with No. 3 spindle, running at 30 rpm and 25°C.

It has been found that by selectively patterning the substrate 25 withmigration enhancing compositions that a substantially enhanced degree offreedom is established in the development of complex patterns. Inparticular, the selective application of treatment chemistries incombination with patterned dye application affords substantial freedomin the creation of sharp transitions between colored regions.

By way of example only, and not limitation, in the break-out section 75of FIG. 30, a colored block 70 as may be developed by the application ofone or more dyes from one or more application bars is illustrated withina background zone 80. By way of example only, in the color block 70, asubstantially level deeply shaded solid coloration of high relief may beachieved by patterned application of one or more dye solutions from oneor more application bars across a substrate on which a pattern ofmigration limiting composition corresponding to the boundaries of thecolor block 70 has been applied.

According to the potentially preferred practice of the presentinvention, prior to application of a dye solution, the substrate 25 istreated with a migration limiting composition of cationic character suchas an aqueous solution containing a cationic polyacrylamide copolymer,quaternized ammonium salt or other suitable composition as previouslydescribed which is counter-ionic to an agent in the dye solution suchthat the migration limiting composition is dispensed across thesubstrate 25 in a pattern which substantially encompasses the colorblock 70. According to a potentially preferred practice, the dispositionof the migration limiting agent will preferably be coextensive with theboundaries of the color block 70. By way of example only, the controlleddisposition of the migration limiting composition may be effected by jetimpingement patterning using one of the application bars 15. In thisregard it is to be understood that the migration limiting compositionmay be applied either directly across the surface of the substrate 25 orin overlying relation to a previously applied surfactant or otherleveler composition. After the migration limiting composition isapplied, at least one dye solution containing a dye with or without athickening agent is applied in a desired pattern. The dye and/or anythickening agent is of ionic character to react with the migrationlimiting composition in covering relation to the color block 70. Due tothe reaction between the migration limiting composition and thecounter-ionic component(s) in the dye solution, diffusion of the dyepast the boundary of the color block is substantially precluded.

As will be appreciated, regardless of the migration character within agiven zone, once a dye has been applied, it is desirable to rapidly andefficiently fix the dye at the substrate so as to preclude furtherundesired blending and/or migration. In the past, such fixation has beeneffected by a wide range of techniques including super heated steam,natural and forced air heating as well as heating using radiant and/orconvective heat transfer mechanisms.

In accordance with a potentially preferred practice of the presentinvention, once a dye has been applied, RF (radio frequency) electricfields may be applied to an effective controlled depth within thesubstrate as to effectively and rapidly heat the dyed portion of thesubstrate so as to prepare the dye for fixation. The parameters of theRF application are controlled so as to provide rapid directional heatingto a controlled depth into the substrate while at the same time avoidingburning or other damage of structural components of the substratematerial. It is contemplated that such RF heating treatment may beparticularly beneficial in the treatment of a pile fabric such as acarpet or the like although it may also be used in treatment of othersubstrates. Thus, while the process will hereinafter be describedthrough reference to treatment of a pile carpet fabric, such descriptionis to be understood to be exemplary and explanatory only.

According to one aspect of the present invention, heating energy may bedelivered to the substrate in the form of electric fields generatedusing a so-called “fringe-field” electrode system operated atfrequencies within the RF range with alternating positive and negativeelectrodes disposed in opposing relation over the pile surface of thecarpet. The operating frequency, and arrangement of electrodes isestablished so as to provide and maintain the desired heating energylevel.

Referring to FIG. 31, an exemplary substrate structure 225 in the formof a cushion backed carpet or carpet tile as may be treated by RFheating is illustrated. In this exemplary construction, the substratestructure 225 is made up of a primary carpet fabric 212 formed from aplurality of pile yarns 214 tufted through a primary backing layer 216such as a scrim or nonwoven fibrous textile of polyester orpolypropylene as will be well known to those of skill in the art. Aprecoat backing layer 218 of a resilient adhesive such as SBR latex isdisposed across the underside of the primary carpet fabric 212 so as tohold the pile yarns 214 in place within the primary backing 216. Anadhesive layer 220 such as a hot melt adhesive extends away from theprecoat backing layer 218. A layer of stabilizing material 222 such aswoven or nonwoven glass is disposed at a position between the adhesivelayer 220 and a cushioning layer 224 such as virgin or rebondedpolyurethane foam or the like. A secondary backing layer 226 such as anonwoven blend of polyester and polypropylene fibers is disposed acrossthe underside of the cushioning layer 224.

As will be appreciated, the actual construction of the substratestructure 225 may be subject to a wide range of variations. Accordingly,the multi-layered construction illustrated in FIG. 31 is to beunderstood as constituting merely an exemplary constructionrepresentative of a carpet and that the present invention is equallyapplicable to any other construction of carpeting and or other textilesas may be desired. By way of example only, various carpet tileconstructions are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,203,881 and 6,468,623,the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference as if fullyset forth herein.

In the event that the substrate structure is a carpet, the pile yarns214 may be either spun or filament yarns formed of natural fibers suchas wool, cotton, or the like. The pile yarns 214 may also be formed ofsynthetic materials such as polyamide polymers including nylon 6 ornylon 6,6, polyesters such as PET and PBT; polyolefins such aspolyethylene and polypropylene; rayon; and polyvinyl polymers such aspolyacrylonitrile. Blends of natural and synthetic fibers such as blendsof cotton, wool and nylon may also be used within the pile yarns 214. InFIG. 31, the pile yarns 214 are illustrated in a loop pile construction.Of course it is to be understood that other pile constructions as willbe known to those of skill in the art including cut pile constructionsand the like may likewise be used.

As described above, a pattern configuration of migration controllingchemicals and dyes may be applied across the substrate 225 so as todevelop desired patterning across the surface of the substrate 225. Thepatterning which is developed may be the result of discrete processcolors in patterned relation across the substrate 225 and/or thecontrolled in situ blending of two or more process colors. Moreover, thepatterning may be further controlled by substantially controlling thedegree of permitted dye migration. Regardless of the patterningtechniques which are utilized, it is desirable to have the ability tosubstantially arrest further dye migration and/or blending in a rapidcontrolled manner by fixing the dyes in place.

In accordance with a potentially preferred practice, it has been foundthat using an RF (radio frequency) heater permits the achievement ofrapid and efficient temperature elevation to a controlled depth withinthe substrate so as to facilitate dye fixation at the dyed portions ofthe substrate. In operation, RF heaters introduce an alternatingelectric field within the item to be heated thereby causing watermolecules within such material to rotate rapidly in an attempt to alignwith the changing electric field. Such rotation generates heat withinthe product.

Applicants have recognized that the proper application of RF heating maybe utilized to enhance dye fixation across a carpet or other textilesubstrate material following the patterned application of dye solutionto the pile yarns. In particular, it has been found that the applicationof RF electric fields may provide rapid heating so as to arrest dyediffusion in a rapid and controlled manner. Moreover, due to the factthat heating is carried out to a controlled depth, the energy transferto the substrate is more efficient and the potential for damage tovarious construction layers underlying the dyed surface of the substrateis substantially minimized.

In application, the present invention preferably makes use of aso-called “fringe field” RF heating unit such as that which is shownschematically in FIG. 34. The RF application unit 230 includes agenerator 232 connected to an arrangement of alternatingly chargedelongate electrodes 234. In the potentially preferred construction, theelectrodes 234 are in the form of rods extending above and transverse toa conveyor 236 which carries the substrate 225, such as a carpet throughthe heating zone. It has been found that by proper selection of theoperational frequency and electrode configuration relative to thesubstrate, that proper surface heating and fixation may be achievedwithout the potentially detrimental occurrence of arcing between theelectrodes and/or undue heating of structural elements below thesurface. As illustrated in phantom lines, an application field isdeveloped in a patterned arrangement between the alternating electrodes.The fields so generated extend an operative distance into the substrate225 so as to provide the energy to effect molecular rotation within thefield boundaries.

The substantially controlled operative depth of the field generatedbetween the electrodes in relation to the various layers of a substratecomposite structure is illustrated in FIG. 35. As shown, the operatingfrequency and electrode spacing are such that the effective electricfield extends to a position just below the pile yarns so as to avoid anysubstantial heating of any underlying layers which may contain moisture.

The use of RF heating to enhance dye fixation is believed to promote therapid fixation of the dye chromaphore at the pile yarns 214 such thateven at relatively low concentrations of dye, a deeper shading isachieved at the visible surface of the pile yarns 214. This improvementin shade retention is illustrated in FIG. 36, wherein light reflectionis measured at the yarn tips of carpet samples dyed with the sameconcentration of the same dye but where one sample undergoes dyefixation using RF preheating followed by steaming while the other sampleundergoes dye fixation using steam fixation alone. The measure ofreflectance along the Y axis is reported in terms of ADOBE PHOTOSHOP® Lvalues wherein a lower number represents a darker shade corresponding toenhanced light absorption and correspondingly reduced reflectance. Asshown, at lower concentrations of dye application, the carpet treatedwith RF preheating exhibited darker shading. The difference in shadingbecame less pronounced as increased concentrations of dye are applied.However, even at the higher dye application levels, the enhanced shadingat the yarn tips within the carpet treated using RF preheating wasmeasurable.

While the phenomena resulting in the enhanced coloration at the yarn tipis not fully understood, it is believed that the use of RF heatingrapidly heats the dyed portions of the substrate to a level sufficientto arrest the tendency of the dye solution to wick away from theapplication zones. Convective and/or conductive heating does not appearto provide the very early arrest of the dye migration which appears tobe provided by RF heating. Thus, the use of RF heating has been found tosubstantially improve the definition of patterns across the substrate bypreventing pixel to pixel diffusion from progressing beyond the pointdesired while also avoiding the occurrence of so called frostiness atthe tips of the dyed yarns.

It is believed that in actual practice, the use of fringe field RF dyeheating may be utilized to substantially improve both the efficiency ofthe dye fixation process as well as the aesthetic appearance of theproduct formed thereby. A wide array of actual product formationpractices incorporating RF heating to aid in dye fixation arecontemplated. By way of example only, and not limitation, variousprocedures applicable to the treatment of carpet are illustrated inFIGS. 32 and 33.

According to a first contemplated practice illustrated in FIG. 32, asubstrate such as a carpet fabric of tufted or bonded constructionincluding a plurality of outwardly projecting pile yarns is subjected toa dye application step during which dye is applied in a pattern acrossthe surface. This application may be by any known technique, althoughthe controlled streaming of dye solutions wherein the dye is applied ona pixel by pixel basis may be preferred. Following application of thedye to the carpet pile, the pile is thereafter heated by RF heatingusing a fringe field RF heating unit so as to apply an activatingelectric field to a predefined depth within the carpet pile. The dye maybe fixed at this step if desired. Following the RF heating step, thecarpet is thereafter cooled. If desired, this cooling may be facilitatedby use of a forced cooling unit.

In FIG. 33, the principal steps in a potentially preferred substratedyeing and treatment process are shown. In this process, a substratesuch as a carpet of tufted or bonded construction including amultiplicity of outwardly projecting pile yarns is pretreated by amigration limiting composition as described above. Following theapplication of the migration limiting composition, the dye is applied ina pattern across the carpet pile by jet streaming.

Following the dye application, the pile is preheated by a fringe fieldRF heating unit which applies an activating electric field to aneffective depth within the carpet pile. Following the RF heating step,dye fixation is completed by application of steam heat. The carpet maythereafter be washed, dried and cooled prior to use.

As previously indicated, the processes as outlined above may beparticularly useful in the manufacture of floor covering textilesincluding broad loom carpet and carpet tile. One potentially preferredprocess of forming a broadloom carpet using a substrate such as 6′ wide,12′ wide, 14′ wide, broadloom substrate is provided at FIG. 37. As willbe appreciated, the broad loom substrate may be a tufted carpet, bondedcarpet, or the like. According to the exemplary process illustrated, onemay pretreat the substrate with, for example, steam, a wetting agent, orthe like, print or dye the substrate using a textile patterning machine,heat the substrate to fix the dye, wash the substrate to remove excessdye or other materials from the dye chemistry such as gums or the like,treat the dyed substrate with for example strain blocker chemistries,bleach resist chemistries, or anti-microbial and antifungal chemistries,and thereafter either wash it again or move the substrate directly to adrying procedure involving for example vacuuming, nip rolling, anddrying, thereafter cooling the substrate, and then cutting the substrateinto rolls of broadloom, slitting it from 12′ wide to 6′ wide, and/orthe like.

In accordance with a particular embodiment of a process or procedure forprinting or dyeing a broadloom substrate and with reference to FIG. 37of the drawings, there is an added pre-heat or pre-set of the substratefollowing printing utilizing a heating means such as radio frequency(RF), infrared (IR), microwave (MW), or the like upstream of a firststeam section followed by a treatment step, if any, followed by a secondsteaming procedure, then to a treatment process followed by vacuuming ornip rolling and then an additional treatment process if desired, forexample adding fluorocarbon, stain blocker, bleach resistance, or thelike, followed by drying, and then a post drying using an RF, IR, or MWenergy source to drive off moisture, followed by cooling and cutting. Inthe process shown in FIG. 37, energy is conserved by using a RF, IR, orMW pre-heat followed by conventional steaming so that the RF, IR, or MWenergy is not required to do the entire fixing of the dye. Likewise,post drying is done by RF, IR, or MW following a conventionalcirculating hot air dryer so that the RF, IR, or MW is used to dry onlythe last remaining moisture from the substrate. In this fashion, energyis conserved and costs are reduced.

Also, by providing for a treatment step between two steaming operations,one can add agents which are fixed by the second steaming procedure.

Although FIG. 37 may relate to a potentially preferred embodiment of abroadloom treatment process, the present invention is in no way limitedthereto.

Like the process of FIG. 37, FIGS. 38 and 39 relate to a rather detailedprocesses of printing or dyeing carpet tiles in accordance withexemplary first and second embodiments of the present invention. Withreference to FIG. 38 of the drawings, undyed carpet tile blanks aredelivered and depalletized or singulated, pretreated by steam, wet out,or the like, printed or dyed in a preferably single file fashion, thenconveyed into a triple wide arrangement of tiles which go through apreheat, preset step, for example, utilizing RF, IR, or MW, the firststeaming step, a treatment step, a second steaming step, a wash andtreatment step, vacuuming, nip rolling, and an additional treatment stepif desired, drying, post drying using, for example IR, RF, or MW,cooling, singulating back to single tile formation, then going throughan edge trimming and face shearing operating as needed, then packaged,palletized, and shipped.

In accordance with the second exemplary process of FIG. 39 of thedrawings, the tiles go through the pre heat or preset step in a singlefile fashion prior to being conveyed into a triple wide arrangement.This provides for a preheat or preset apparatus which must only treat asingle line of tiles and provide for not only energy efficiency, butalso insures that each tile is treated in the same fashion so to avoidany inconsistencies that might occur across three tiles being conveyedthrough a preheat or preset device. Treating single wide tiles insuresthat each tile is treated in the same fashion so as to avoid anyinconsistencies that might occur across three tiles being conveyedthrough a preheat or preset device, such as an RF, IR, or MW device. Itis preferred that each and every tile be treated in the same fashion sothat the resultant products are identical to insure that quality ismaintained.

A basic jet dyeing, patterning, or printing process includes the basicsteps of presenting a dyeable substrate in a controlled fashion underone or more dye applicators, controlling the dye applicators toselectively dye predetermined pixels or locations on the substrate,controlling the transport of the substrate, past or under the dyeapplicators so as to dye in registration, and thereafter fixing the dye,washing the substrate, drying the substrate, cutting or trimming thesubstrate, packaging the substrate, and the like.

In accordance with a more complex and possibly preferred process ofdyeing broadloom form substrate, such as 6′ wide, 12′ wide, 14′ wide,broadloom substrate such as tufted carpet, bonded carpet, or the like,one may pretreat the substrate with, for example, steam, a wettingagent, or the like, print or dye the substrate using a textilepatterning machine, heat the substrate to fix the dye, wash thesubstrate to remove excess dye or other materials from the dye chemistrysuch as gums or the like, treat the dyed substrate with for examplestrain blocker chemistries, bleach resist chemistries, or anti-microbialand antifungal chemistries, and thereafter either wash it again or movethe substrate directly to a drying procedure involving for examplevacuuming, nip rolling, and drying, thereafter cooling the substrate,and then cutting the substrate into tiles, area rugs, rolls ofbroadloom, slitting it from 12′ wide to 6′ wide, and/or the like.

In accordance with a particular embodiment of a process or procedure forprinting or dyeing a broadloom substrate and with reference to FIG. 37of the drawings, there is an added pre-heat or pre-set of the substratefollowing printing utilizing a heating means such as radio frequency(RF), infrared (IR), microwave (MW), or the like upstream of a firststeam section followed by a treatment step, if any, followed by a secondsteaming procedure, then to a treatment process followed by vacuuming ornip rolling and then an additional treatment process if desired, forexample adding fluorocarbon, stain blocker, bleach resistance, or thelike, followed by drying, and then a post drying using an RF, IR, or MWenergy source to drive off moisture, followed by cooling and cutting. Inthe process shown in FIG. 32, energy is conserved by using a RF, IR, orMW pre-heat followed by conventional steaming so that the RF, IR, or MWenergy is not required to do the entire fixing of the dye. Likewise,post drying is done by RF, IR, or MW following a conventionalcirculating hot air dryer so that the RF, IR, or MW is used to dry onlythe last remaining moisture from the substrate. In this fashion, energyis conserved and costs are reduced.

Also, by providing for a treatment step between two steaming operations,one can add agents which are fixed by the second steaming procedure.

Although FIG. 32 may relate to a potentially preferred embodiment of abroadloom treatment process, the present invention is in no way limitedthereto.

Like the process of FIG. 32, FIGS. 33 and 34 relate to a rather detailedprocesses of printing or dyeing carpet tiles in accordance withexemplary first and second embodiments of the present invention. Withreference to FIG. 33 of the drawings, undyed carpet tile blanks aredelivered and depalletized or singulated, pretreated by steam, wet out,or the like, printed or dyed in a preferably single file fashion, thenconveyed into a triple wide arrangement of tiles which go through apreheat, preset step, for example, utilizing RF, IR, or MW, the firststeaming step, a treatment step, a second steaming step, a wash andtreatment step, vacuuming, nip rolling, and an additional treatment stepif desired, drying, post drying using, for example IR, RF, or MW,cooling, singulating back to single tile formation, then going throughan edge trimming and face shearing operating as needed, then packaged,palletized, and shipped.

In accordance with the second exemplary process of FIG. 34 of thedrawings, the tiles go through the pre heat or preset step in a singlefile fashion prior to being conveyed into a triple wide arrangement.This provides for a preheat or preset apparatus which must only treat asingle line of tiles and provide for not only energy efficiency, butalso insures that each tile is treated in the same fashion so to avoidany inconsistencies that might occur across three tiles being conveyedthrough a preheat or preset device. Treating single wide tiles insuresthat each tile is treated in the same fashion so as to avoid anyinconsistencies that might occur across three tiles being conveyedthrough a preheat or preset device, such as an RF, IR, or MW device. Itis preferred that each and every tile be treated in the same fashion sothat the resultant products are identical to insure that quality ismaintained.

Product Detailed Discussion

As discussed above, the patterning system described herein has beenshown to have the ability to produce patterned floor covering textilesthat are unique in ways that are both visually apparent andscientifically measurable. The basis for this statement will beexplained in conjunction with FIGS. 40 through 219. These Figures showan exemplary floor covering substrate—here, a carpet tile—that has beenpatterned in a way that will illustrate the discussion that follows, andadditionally show and explain various measurements and the results ofthese measurements made on representative substrates carrying a similarpattern. For comparison purposes, the patterning system used willinclude not only the preferred stationary color bar, drop-on-demandpatterning system described in detail above, but also the alternativedrop-on-demand and recirculation-type patterning systems discussedabove.

FIG. 40 depicts a patterned pile carpet tile 10 with dyed pattern areas1 through 6, each area being dyed a different, visually uniform colorthat forms a boundary with at least two adjacent pattern areas.Additionally, each pattern area contains at least two sets of designelements in the form of a series of progressively dimensioned rectanglesor “test bars” of uniform length but decreasing thickness that arepositioned to be closely parallel to an immediately adjacent patternarea, from which the test bar derives its color. For example, the 5 setsof test bars in Pattern Area 3 contains the respective colors of PatternAreas 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6. The thickness of each test bar in a set, butnot their relative spacing, follows a decreasing progression in terms ofintegral pixel widths (0.05 inches or 1.27 mm), with the thickest testbar for the PREF and RECIRC patterning systems being 0.30 inches (7.62mm) thick and spaced 0.5 inches (1.27 cm) from the respective patternarea, the next-thickest test bar being 0.25 inches (6.35 mm) thick, andso on, through the following progression: 0.20 inches (5.08 mm), 0.15inches (3.81 mm), 0.10 inches (2.54 mm), and 0.05 inches (1.27 mm). Acorresponding test pattern was generated for the DOD patterning device,with units appropriate for the pixel width (0.0625 inch or 0.159 mm) ofthat device.

Accordingly, the thinnest test bar (with dimensions dictated by thepixel size or gauge of the patterning device) has a thickness of onepixel (0.05 in./1.27 mm or 0.0625 in./0.159 mm) and is positioned 0.5inches (1.27 cm) from the immediately preceding test bar. These testbars provide, for purposes of discussion, certain features that wereused to establish differences in pattern definition and appearance thatare believed to distinguish the products of the preferred patterningprocess from that of any other process intended for the automatedpatterning of textile substrates on a commercial scale. Thesedistinctive characteristics are discussed below.

One distinctive characteristic of the pattern produced by the preferredstationary color bar, drop-on-demand patterning system described indetail above, is the dramatic abruptness with which a first color thatcharacterizes a first pattern area can transition into a second colorthat characterizes an immediately adjacent second pattern area. Thisabruptness, which provides for sharply-defined pattern elements, hasbeen quantified as a Transition Width between the two adjacent patternareas, and shall be used as a measure of the improvement in patterndefinition that is achievable using the teachings herein. The concept ofrelative contrast between adjacent pattern areas, which contributes toperceived visual contrast, depth of color, and pattern definition(collectively referred to as pattern “pop”) is related to TransitionWidth in that a small Transition Width tends to emphasize differencesbetween boundary colors, and therefore contributes to the perception ofincreased contrast.

Closely related to the concept of Transition Width is that of FeatureWidth, a second distinctive characteristic of the preferred patteringsystem described herein. Feature Width may be thought of as the shortestdistance over which an observable pattern feature or element can beaccurately and reliably displayed on the substrate or, alternatively, aseffective gauge, i.e., the level of detail or degree of resolution thatcan be achieved on a specified substrate with a specified patterningsystem. Measures of Feature Width will be used to confirm that thepreferred patterning system is capable of providing an effectiveprinting gauge that is much closer to the theoretical maximum gauge ofthe pattering system than the other systems tested. The subjects ofFeature Width and effective gauge will be discussed in greater detailbelow.

The effect of good Transition Width performance is enhanced whereFeature Width performance (i.e., pattern detail) is also good. If bothperformances are good, the pattern has considerable apparent relativecontrast, and appears both highly defined and visually rich. If finedetail is present, but Transition Width performance is mediocre or poor,the overall relative contrast is appreciably reduced, and the resultingpattern appears lacking in “pop,” and the fine detail appears indistinctor washed out.

It will be readily understood by those skilled in the art that both ofthe above characteristics—Transition Width between adjacent colors andFeature Width of small-scale details—are functions of severalparameters, the most important of which are believed to include (1) thephysical nature and uniformity of the substrate and its wickingcharacteristics, (2) the nature of the dye (particularly its viscosityand its interaction with any topical chemical treatments that modify thesurface energy of the substrate and thereby modify the migrationcharacteristics of the dye following its application), and (3) thequantity of dye that is applied to the substrate. Each of these will bediscussed in turn.

It can be readily appreciated even by those not skilled in the art thatattempting to form, using liquid colorants, a pattern having highdefinition on a substrate that is both inherently absorbent andinherently non-uniform (as are most textiles) is a daunting task. Notonly does the inherent non-uniformities of substrate construction (e.g.,small temporary differences in the direction of pile lay or in yarnheight or twist) make difficult the application of dye to the substratealong a stable, well-defined line, but the migration characteristics ofthe dye following application frequently result in uncontrolled andundesirable lateral wicking of the dye into adjacent pattern areas,thereby degrading edge definition.

Generally speaking, low viscosity dyes tend to migrate within asubstrate more readily than high viscosity dyes. Accordingly, use of lowviscosity dyes has both favorable and unfavorable consequences: greatermigration yields less lateral control of ultimate dye placement, andtherefore tends to reduce the definition with which a pattern can bereproduced, but also tends to promote vertical migration (i.e.,migration along the length of the yarn or fiber), and therefore tends toincrease the dye penetration within the substrate. Contrariwise, highviscosity dyes provide relatively greater lateral control of ultimatedye placement, but frequently such lateral control comes at the expenseof limiting vertical migration within individual yarns or groups ofyarns. This is graphically depicted in FIGS. 41A and 41B. In FIG. 41A, adye drop is shown on a cut pile textile surface that is well controlledlaterally, but also is not providing appreciable penetration.Conversely, the dye drop of FIG. 41B appears to be providingsubstantially more penetration, but at the expense of significantlateral migration. FIGS. 42A and 42B show similar effects on a loop piletextile surface. Attempts to simultaneously retain the advantages of lowviscosity and high viscosity dye systems, without the attendantdisadvantages, have usually involved the addition or application ofvarious chemical migration modifying agents to the dye or to thesubstrate, as discussed in detail above.

Those skilled in the art will also recognize that the quantity of dyeapplied to a given area on the substrate is of considerablesignificance, in that relatively sharp transitions and relatively highdefinition in patterns frequently are achievable if wet pickup (ameasure of the quantity of dye applied to and incorporated into thesubstrate) is reduced to a level at which only the top-most portion ofthe constituent yarns or fibers comprising the substrate surface areconsistently and thoroughly dyed. By so doing, the migration betweenadjacent yarns or fibers is minimized and the observed definition of therendered pattern is improved. This improvement, however, can result indecreased dye penetration within the substrate, yielding yarns ortextile fibers that carry the desired color only along a relativelysmall proportion of their length and that tend to show incompletely dyedyarns or textile fibers beyond the yarn tips when the pile surface isbrushed or parted. Accordingly, for a given substrate and a given dyeand topical chemistry system, it is believed that the PREF patterningsystem described herein yields a patterned product that is unique inthat the pattern simultaneously can exhibit both high definition andhigh dye penetration within the substrate.

In order to understand the following discussions relating to colormeasurement, it is necessary to understand that the measurement of colorcommonly involves separate measurements of various components of color.A widely-recognized system, known as the CIELAB system is a rectangular,three-dimensional coordinate system in which the respectiveperpendicular axes are lightness (“L*), redness/greenness (“a*”) andyellowness/blueness (“b*”). Accordingly, differences in color between afirst color (e.g., that color characteristic of Pattern Area 1) and asecond color (e.g., that color characteristic of Pattern Area 2) can berepresented by the respective differences in L* values, a* values, andb* values, or, mathematically,ΔL*=L* _(Color 1) −L* _(Color 2)Δa*=a* _(Color 1) −a* _(Color 2)Δb*=b* _(Color 1) −b* _(Color 2)

with the total color difference represented by:ΔE* _(ab)=[(ΔL*)²+(Δa*)²+(Δb*)²]^(1/2)

While the above formulae specifically address the CIELAB coloridentification system, it is known that the Lab system used in AdobePhotoshop® (distributed by Adobe Systems of San Jose, Calif.)(hereinafter, “Photoshop®”) is substantially the same, and was used asindicated for the analyses herein. Accordingly, the mathematicalrelationships expressed above, with slightly different nomenclature, areequally valid for the Photoshop® Lab system.

To understand the discussions herein concerning the migration andblending behavior of various color pairs along common boundaries, it isnecessary to introduce the concept of a dominant boundary color. In manycases, where two colors in a pattern are contiguous, the boundary regionseparating the respectively colored areas, if magnified, would appear tocomprise an essentially monotonic increase in the visual concentrationof one color, overlaid by a roughly corresponding essentially monotonicdecrease in the visual concentration of the other color. In some cases,one sees in the boundary region a third color that is the subtractivecombination of the two colors that appears in the central portion of theboundary region. Therefore, in a magnified view, the boundary regionresembles a graduated transition from one color to the other (perhapswith the introduction of a third color in the middle of the transition),although, due to ever-present variations in color imposed by substratesurface and wicking irregularities and other factors, discussed below,the transition is not necessarily a smooth one.

Where the boundary is formed by one of a class of colors termed“dominant boundary colors,” this “graduated transition” model might needto be modified. Such colors are sufficiently dark or chromaticallydominant that they may establish a relatively well-defined boundary,with little apparent blending or co-mingling of color, wherever theystop migrating, regardless of the migration of the color in the opposingpattern area. One can intuitively appreciate that, where, for example,black dye is applied to Pattern Area 1 and beige dye is applied toPattern Area 2, the resulting boundary region is likely to be definedmuch more in terms of the extent to which the black dye has migratedinto areas occupied by some beige dye, rather than in terms of theextent to which beige dye has migrated into areas occupied by some blackdye. This is due to the fact that any mixtures of black and beigedye—regardless of any preponderance of beige dye in the mixture—are morelikely to be perceived as black rather than beige. Other colors thatexhibit this behavior, and thus can be considered dominant boundarycolors, include red, dark blue, and green. Generally, for two dyes atthe same concentration (i.e., dye molecules per unit volume), the muchdarker color is the dominant color. For the same dye at differentconcentrations, the color with the much higher concentration willdominate.

Through use of Kubelka-Munk Theory, this relationship, in somewhatsimplified form, can be expressed mathematically by the followinggeneralized inequality that expressed the case where a first dyedominates a second dye:C ₁ ·[k ₁ /s ₀ ]≧≧C ₂ ·[k ₂ /s ₀]

where C₁ and C₂ are the concentrations of the first and second dyes,respectively, k₁ and k₂ are their respective coefficients of lightabsorption, and s₀ is the coefficient of light scattering of thesubstrate. Those skilled in the art will recognize that the variouscoefficients are wavelength-specific, and the above comparison must bemodified for colors with chroma to include the effects of perceptualdiscrimination at different wavelengths; e.g., the use of CIELABΔE*_(ab).

Notwithstanding the above, it should be understood that, generally,boundary regions appear to have characteristics that are a composite ofbehavior often associated with dominant colors (e.g., relativelywell-defined contours where the dominant color defines the boundary) andbehavior often associated with non-dominant color interactions (e.g.,relatively graduated transitions from one pattern color to the other).Visual assessments of patterns are usually most influenced by thedominant colors.

Regardless of whether dominant or non-dominant colors are involved, theboundary region tends to be non-uniform in nature, thereby requiringsome means by which they are minimized so that useable data relating tocolor change within the boundary region can be measured. It will berecalled that several distinctive characteristics of the patternsgenerated by the preferred patterning system described above—TransitionWidth, Feature Width, and effective gauge—were identified. With theabove as background, measuring these characteristics will now bediscussed in greater detail.

According to the teachings herein, the concept of Transition Width isperhaps the most fundamental in discussions concerning the descriptionand analysis of high definition patterning of textiles. It involves thequantification of the changes in color between adjacent colored areaswithin a pattern, as measured across a common boundary, and is simply anattempt to characterize the degree of abruptness with which a transitionfrom one colored area on the substrate to an adjacent colored area canbe achieved. Good Transition Width performance has been found to be offundamental importance in establishing a pattern that exhibits highdefinition.

Intuitively, it might appear that the most direct way to measure atransition between two adjacent colored areas would be to makecalorimetric measurements, starting well within Pattern Area 1 andextending along a direct path to a point well within Pattern Area 2.Theoretically, the edges of the boundary region—that region in which therespective colors of Pattern Areas 1 and 2 measurably influence eachother—should be apparent provided a sufficiently sensitive instrument isused. Due primarily to the surface topology of the substrate surface andits attendant non-uniform reflective properties, repeated measurementsalong different paths crossing the same boundary region can produceresults that vary wildly due to an apparent “substrate noise” component,superimposed on the color signal, that can significantly obscure theonset of the boundary region. Usually, this situation is only made worseby increasing the sensitivity or the resolution of the measurementsystem. Accordingly, the concept of a defined, mathematically-derivedTransition Width that includes significant data averaging is used as arefined measure of the abruptness that characterized the boundariesbetween colors in contiguous pattern areas. The derivation and practicalcalculation of this term is set forth below, and begins with thecalibration of the scanning equipment.

FIG. 43 sets forth in summary form the major steps involved indetermining the Transition Width of a selected portion of a boundaryregion. It should be noted that each of the steps indicated in FIG. 43is explained in further detail in connection with FIGS. 46 and 47A-47Cthat collectively describe the image data acquisition and analysisprocedures associated with generating Transition Width and Feature Widthdata from the test patterns.

Step 800 of FIG. 43 involves the calibration of the scanner to be usedin scanning the sample for which a Transition Width and/or Feature Widthis to be calculated. This calibration procedure is set forth in moredetail in FIG. 44, discussed below. Not mentioned in FIG. 44 are thosegood practices known to those skilled in the art, such as allowingadequate scanner warm-up time, cleaning the glass surface of thescanner, etc.

As seen in FIG. 44, steps 852 through 870 are collectively directed tothe calibration of a color scanner or similar device that can, whenproperly calibrated, scan a pattern appearing on a textile substrate andgenerate a signal (perhaps with the assistance of additional signalprocessing software) that accurately represents color as a function ofposition on the substrate. Step 852 represents the scanning (in manualmode, with all automatic adjustments disabled) of a standardized colortest target (e.g., Kodak Q-60 Photographic Target Standard, availablefrom Eastman Kodak Company of Rochester, N.Y.). Such test targets areaccompanied by a data disk containing CIELAB or other numericalcharacterizations of the colors displayed on the target (i.e., the“true” target colors) (step 854). By comparing the scanned colors withthe “true” colors (step 856) with the aid of appropriate software suchas GretagMacBeth's Profile Maker 3.1 (distributed by GretagMacBeth LLCof New Windsor, N.Y.), a scanner-specific color profile can begenerated. This profile allows for automatic numeric representation ofcolor in a color space (e.g., Photoshop® Lab) that closely correspondsto CIELAB, as a function of position.

An optional, but recommended, step is to assess the accuracy of thecolor profile, a straightforward process outlined in FIG. 44 that usesPhotoshop® to convert scan values into Photoshop® Lab values. Thisprocedure (which duplicates the image data acquisition steps 872-878 ofFIG. 47A) results in the generation of a ΔE_(ab)* value for each colorin the target, generated by comparing the scanned and subsequentlyprofiled color values of each target value with the L*a*b* values of thesame target color from the calibration disk that accompanied the target,and provides an assessment of the overall calorimetric accuracy of thescanning procedure. It should be noted that step 868 of FIG. 44preferably may be done with the aid of software that locates andisolates the respective color areas on the target. Averaging theΔE*_(ab) values for each color on the Kodak Q-60 target was found toresult in a value of about 3.5 (with a standard deviation of theaveraged ΔE*_(ab) of about 0.2 over time). Such values were consideredacceptable.

Returning to FIG. 43, step 802 refers to preparation of the sample,which involves brushing the sample to remove loose fibers and tostandardize the pile lay. The sample is then oriented on the cleanscanner bed and is aligned appropriately (i.e., with the boundary regionor test bar of interest aligned with the side of the scanner bed), withcare taken not to disturb the pile. The next step indicated in FIG. 43involves the selection, sizing, and scanning of the boundary regionformed between two pattern areas (respectively, “PATTERN AREA 1” and“PATTERN AREA 2”) to be analyzed.

Selection of the location and size of the sample area to be scannedinvolves several considerations. Theoretically, the edges of theboundary region—where the respective colors of Pattern Areas 1 and 2begin to mix—should be apparent provided an instrument of highsensitivity and resolution is used. However, as discussed above, suchinstruments tend to produce outputs that contain significant substratenoise. The degree to which such noise obscures the relevant data isdetermined by a number of factors, including the resolution of thescanner. Analyses using a relatively high resolution scan (e.g., 100 to300 d.p.i.) typically resulted in a large substrate noise component,while analyses using a relatively low resolution scan more in keepingwith the actual effective gauge of the pattern on the substrate (e.g.,10 to 20 d.p.i.) yielded results that were deemed too approximate or“quantized” to provide the resolving power necessary for anappropriately revealing analysis. Accordingly, a scanning resolution of50 d.p.i. (i.e., 20 dots per centimeter) was selected as an appropriatecompromise. To avoid confusion in the course of these discussion, itwill be necessary to distinguish, as the context requires, this scanningresolution (sometimes expressed in terms of pixels) from the resolution,or pixel size, associated with the patterning process (i.e., patterningmachine print gauge).

In a further effort to reduce the noise component due to these signalvariations, it was decided that the width of the path across theboundary region should be increased from a single pixel path to a swathof 50 pixels, or one inch (2.54 cm), wide (extending parallel to theboundary region). In this way, a line profile that is an average of 50paths was generated for each pixel along a perpendicular path across theboundary region. By so doing, substrate surface variations along the 50pixel width associated with each scan tend to self-cancel, and thesubsequent image processing steps (e.g., generating Transition Widthsand Feature Widths, discussed below) are less influenced by aberrantdata points. The result is a much more clearly defined curve, asdepicted at 12 in FIG. 45.

It is also recommended that the selected boundary region besubstantially straight (i.e., not curved) over the region tested inorder to facilitate analysis in accordance with the teachings herein. Anadditional consideration in sizing the region to be scanned (apart fromproviding for an appropriate number of scan paths, discussed above) isthe need to establish the correct desired endpoints of the colortransition represented by the boundary region (i.e., the actual colorsof the pattern areas uninfluenced by dye migration from the boundaryregion). Accordingly, the area of the sample that is scanned shouldinclude areas sufficiently far from the boundary region of interest thatthe respective colors of the two pattern areas contiguous to theboundary region can be individually characterized without the influenceof the other color. If such characterization is not possible because,for instance, one (or both) of the pattern areas forming the boundaryregion is a fine detail, it may be necessary, in addition to the scanincluding the boundary region of interest, to make a separate scan ofone or more similarly colored pattern area(s) in another part of thesubstrate surface that allows characterization of the semi-infinitecolor of the two pattern areas forming the boundary region.

Following these procedures, the sample is appropriately scanned (e.g.,in the same manual mode used to scan the color target), with theboundary region appropriately (and consistently) oriented so thatsubsequent line profiling (or averaging) is parallel to the boundaryregion. The output of the scanner (following appropriate colorprofiling) is then used to generate separate Photoshop® L, a, and bcolor channel images (step 804). As indicated at step 806, the L, a, andb images of the semi-infinite areas selected to represent the colors ofthe two pattern areas forming the boundary region of interest are usedto determine the overall color change (ΔE_(max)) found between PatternAreas 1 and 2. Since the color values may be encoded in a particular wayto facilitate ease of image pixel storage, it may be necessary toconvert the encoded values of the Photoshop® Lab values into theircalorimetric equivalent. This overall color change (ΔE_(max)) is usedlater (step 814) to calculate Transition Width (i.e., the colordifference ΔE_(max) takes place over a distance ΔX, the TransitionWidth).

In step 808, images that represent color derivatives (i.e., rate ofchange of color with position across the boundary region) are calculated(using two convolution kernels, discussed in connection with FIGS. 46and 46A) for each of the three color channel images. Then the PhotoshopLab derivative images are used to calculate a derivative line profileacross the boundary region for each color channel. This process may bebetter understood with reference to the overview diagrams of FIGS. 46and 46A.

As depicted in FIG. 46, the boundary region of interest has beenselected (820), a scan area representative of that boundary region andthe adjoining pattern areas have been defined (821), and the individualPhotoshop® L, a, and b color channel images have been generated (822,824, and 826). The next step (830, 832, 834) involves the application ofa convolution kernel that performs an averaging operation parallel tothe boundary region, in this case, a 9×9 kernel, in the manner known tothose skilled in the art. As a result of this operation, each pixelcomprising each color channel image is assigned an average value that iscalculated by adding the value of that pixel with the values of the fourpixels above and below that pixel (i.e., parallel to the boundaryregion) and dividing by nine, thereby providing respective L, a, and bimages that have been spatially averaged parallel to the boundaryregion.

Also as indicated in these steps (and described in more detail in FIG.47A, at steps 886 and 888), a second convolution kernel is used,identical to the first except for having its non-zero values uniformlyoffset by 1 pixel in a direction perpendicular to the boundary region.This kernel has the effect of averaging the pixel values within a 1×9column (4 pixels above and below the central pixel) parallel to theboundary region and assigning the average value to the central pixel, asabove, as well as shifting the image by one pixel perpendicular to thedirection of the boundary region. After all pixel locations within thescanned area have been averaged using these two convolution kernels, theresults are stored. The respective color channel images are thensubtracted from each other to form images representing a finitedifference approximation of the derivative at the boundary for each L,a, and b color channel (see FIG. 46 at 840, 844, and 848), indicated asL₁₂, a₁₂, and b₁₂, respectively. A line profile across the boundaryregion based on each of these finite difference images is thengenerated, as indicated (842, 846, 850). Such signal compositing oraveraging, as well as derivative calculations, may be performed usingsoftware such as Image Pro Plus®, Adobe Photoshop®, IPL®, MATLAB®, orother software having similar functionality.

The individual L, a, and b line profiles are then combined to form anoverall Euclidian Color Derivative (“E.C.D.”), i.e.,${E.C.D._{x}} = \sqrt{( \frac{\mathbb{d}L}{\mathbb{d}x} )^{2} + ( \frac{\mathbb{d}a}{\mathbb{d}x} )^{2} + ( \frac{\mathbb{d}b}{\mathbb{d}x} )^{2}}$actually based on finite difference calculations, which provides ameasure of the rate at which color is changing as a function of distance(x) across the boundary region. This E.C.D. optionally may be plotted toprovide some visual feedback as to the nature of the color change withinthe boundary region. As indicated at 812 of FIG. 43, the ultimate valueof the E.C.D. is in determining the maximum rate of color change withinthe boundary region (designated “E.C.D._(max)”), and determining thatpoint (X_(max)) along a perpendicular path across the boundary region atwhich that maximum rate occurs. The Transition Width calculation is thenstraightforward, as indicated at 814, in accordance with the followingformula:Transition Width=[ΔE _(max) /E.C.D. _(max)]

One skilled in the art will recognize that if multiple boundary regionsare present, care must be taken that the measurements of E.C.D._(max)and ΔE_(max) represent the boundary region of interest.

FIGS. 48 through 51 present, by means of a graphical analogy, analternative approach to describing this general process. FIG. 48depicts, in highly schematic and abbreviated form, a transition from onepattern area to a second pattern area having an idealized boundaryregion in which no blending from one area to the other occurs. FIGS. 49through 51 depict, in highly schematic and exaggerated form, three typesof boundary regions that are commonly encountered. In most cases, theobserved boundary regions more closely resemble a combination of two ormore of the depicted boundary regions. FIG. 49A is an example of thefirst type of boundary, in which the color from a first area 12gradually transitions into the (different) color of a second area 14.The resulting boundary region is depicted as an overlap of graduallydiminishing concentrations of the respective colors comprising theopposing pattern areas. In such cases, the inevitable substrate noisethat accompanies such measurements tends to obscure the leading andtrailing edges of the boundary region, which is a principle reason forthe adoption of the “linearized color difference curve” approachdescribed above—such approach needs only the maximum slope of the colordifference curve (an easier data element to measure or estimate), andnot its measured end points, in order to calculate the edges (and themagnitude) of the Transition Width.

Color value is plotted schematically along the vertical axis of FIG. 49Bas a function of relative position across the boundary region, which isplotted along the horizontal axis. For illustrative purposes, FIG. 49Bhas been vertically aligned with the visual representation of theboundary region in FIG. 49A. The first derivatives dL/dx, da/dx, db/dx,are calculated using any appropriate software, such as Image Pro Plus®4.5 (available from Media Cybernetics, Inc. of Silver Spring, Md.),Adobe Photoshop®, etc. They are combined to produce the E.C.D. plottedin FIG. 49C, and also has been aligned with the visual representation ofFIGS. 49A and 49B.

This derivative curve 30 represents, in graphical form, the rate ofcolor change as a function of location across the boundary region, andgenerally can be expected to have a single global maximum, in this caseat X_(max). Depending upon the sophistication desired, this derivativeis preferably calculated using all three Photoshop® Lab color channels.In recognition of the possible use of multi-dimensional color space(including the use of other color coordinate systems, such as Lightness,Chroma, and Hue), the vertical axis or magnitude of the derivative isgenerically labeled Euclidian Color Derivative. The horizontal axisidentifies that location within the boundary region at which the rate ofchange of color (i.e., the rate of change of ΔE) is a maximum.

Using the indicated maximum value of the E.C.D., a linearized colordifference curve 20 has been constructed (49B) by drawing a straightline on the curve at X_(max) with the slope equal to the maximum valueof the E.C.D. When extrapolated to intersect the color values definingthe ΔE_(max) (i.e., the color values 18, 22 associated with therespective opposed pattern areas at 12 and 14), the projection of theseintersection points onto the X-axis defines the Transition Width (“TW”)within this boundary region.

FIG. 50 depicts, in highly schematic and exaggerated form, an example ofthe second type of boundary that, in less “pure” form, is commonlyencountered in boundary regions. In this case, the color from a firstarea 11 forms a much more distinct, but much more irregular, linebetween the two pattern areas, 11 and 13. Rather than a diffuse, subtleblending of the two colors forming the boundary, the dominant colortends to form a relatively well-defined, but wandering, edge that onlygenerally follows the axis of the boundary and subjectively yields apattern that, while sharply defined on a micro scale, does notcontribute to the high definition appearance discussed herein. Theessential character of the meandering edge, along with the inevitabletextural-related noise that accompanies these color measurements, makesthe determination of the leading and trailing edges of the boundaryregion a meaningless matter unless some sort of averaging or weightingprocess is used. Again, the adoption of the “linearized color differencecurve” approach described above can be used in such cases, as suchapproach needs only the maximum slope of the color difference curve (aneasier data element to measure or estimate), and not its measured endpoints, in order to calculate the edges (and the magnitude) of theTransition Width.

Color value is plotted along the vertical axis of FIG. 50B as a functionof relative position across the boundary region, which is plotted alongthe horizontal axis. For illustrative purposes, FIG. 50B has beenvertically aligned with the visual representation of the boundary regionin FIG. 50A. The first derivatives (again calculated using anyappropriate software, such as Image Pro Plus® 4.5) is plotted in FIG.50C, and for illustrative purposes, also has been aligned with thevisual representation of FIG. 50A. Using the indicated maximum value 36of the first derivative 34, a linearized color difference curve 28 hasbeen constructed. When extrapolated to intersect the color valuescharacterizing the respective opposed pattern areas (at 24 and 26,respectively), the projection of these intersecting points onto theX-axis defines the Transition Width within this boundary region.

It has been observed that, in some cases, the boundary region betweenthe color of one region and the color of a second, contiguous regiondoes not involve a transition involving only the two respective colors,but rather involves the formation of an entirely different, intermediatecolor within the boundary region, such as when red and green blend intoeach other to form brown. That situation is graphically illustrated, insimilar fashion, in FIG. 51. In such cases, calculation of thederivative yields two peaks, and the less dominant peak is ignored. Thecalculation of Transition Width and Feature Width is based only on thelarger derivative peak.

Details of the above-described Transition Width determination are setforth in FIG. 47A through 47C. Step 882 depicts the selection of thescan area for the boundary region of interest. As noted, it isrecommended that the boundary region associated with the selectedpattern areas is substantially centered (to provide for a determinationof the “pure” color of each of the respective pattern areas away fromthe influence of the boundary region) and parallel to the direction inwhich the boundary region will be spatially averaged. Otherwise, theaveraging procedure will tend to obscure the inherent sharpness of theboundary.

A scan of the properly prepared sample, with the calibrated scanner setto manual mode (i.e., no auto adjustment of contrast, hue, lightness,etc.—the same settings used for scanning the color target), is thenperformed (872) using an appropriate scanner such as a Umax Powerlook2100 XL, available from UMAX Technologies, Inc. of Dallas, Tex., andappropriate software, such as Magic Scan acquisition software, alsoavailable from UMAX Technologies, Inc. of Dallas, Tex. As discussedabove, it has been found that relatively high scanning resolutions tendto contribute excessive substrate noise when scanning non-uniformsubstrates as here. Accordingly, scanning resolutions on the order of 50d.p.i. (e.g., 20 dots per centimeter) are suggested as appropriate forthis analysis, although other resolutions may be effective, dependingupon the uniformity of the sample. Additionally, 8-bit data acquisitionper color channel is recommended. The 24-bit RGB results of the scanshould be stored in a preferred lossless format (e.g., a TIFF file).

The previously generated color profile is then applied within Photoshop®to the scanned image to convert the sample image RGB file to Photoshop®sRGB values (874). The sRGB values are then converted to Photoshop® Labvalues (876) and the image is separated into 8-bit L, a, and b colorchannel images, and are stored in a lossless manner (878).

At this point, imaging processing software such as Image Pro Plus,distributed by Media Cybernetics, Inc. of Silver Spring, Md., is used toform a kernel that will generate spatially averaged images for eachcolor channel to smooth the data to allow for more meaningful additionalprocessing. The first 9×9 kernel used herein contained all zeros, exceptfor the central column, which contained all 1's. As indicated at 886 and888, two such kernels (K₁ and K₂) are generated, the second kernel (K₂)being identical to the first except for a consistent 1-pixel lateralshift perpendicular to the image boundary region. When each of the threecolor channel images is convolved, in turn, with K₁ and K₂, theresulting pairs of L, a, and b channel images (L₁, a₁, and b₁, and L₂,a₂, and b₂, respectively) are subtracted, in pixel-by-pixel fashion,from each other (i.e., L₁₂=L₂−L₁, a₁₂=a₂−a₁, b₁₂=b₂−b₁) to form acorresponding set of finite difference images in which each pixelcomprising the respective image has the indicated L₁₂, a₁₂, or b₁₂values (890, 892, 894). As noted in the Figure at 894, in cases wheredata must be stored as non-negative values (e.g., 8-bit, 0-255 data), itmay be necessary to add some constant to the data to assure thatnegative values are not lost in the storage process. That constant ismerely subtracted when the data are retrieved for the purpose ofreconstructing absolute color differences.

At step 896, suitable image processing software, such as Image Pro Plus®is used to generate line profiles based on each of the three finitedifference images, again for the purpose of allowing for more meaningfuladditional analysis of highly non-uniform substrates. Each of the threeprofiles (one per color channel) is generated by averaging therespective L₁₂, a₁₂, or b₁₂ values along a 1×50 pixel strip that isoriented parallel to the boundary region and that is incremented, pixelby pixel, along a line perpendicular to the boundary region. The resultis the generation of average L₁₂, a₁₂, and b₁₂ values as a function ofperpendicular distance (“x”) across the boundary region. If derived froma single boundary region, such line profiles usually resemblesingle-mode (or multi-mode, if the colors blend within the boundaryregion to form a third color), generally bell-shaped curves, as shown at842, 846, and 850 of FIG. 46.

Step 898 establishes an equivalence between the averaged finitedifference values for each color channel generated in the preceding stepand the corresponding derivative, from which the individual colorchannel data may be combined to form a comprehensive “Euclidian ColorDerivative” (“E.C.D.”) that tracks the average rate of change of color(incorporating data from all three color channels) as a function ofperpendicular distance into the boundary region. Also, as indicated, anL-value scaling factor may be necessary, and any constants added in step894 should be subtracted at this time.

As indicated at 902, the calculations to this point apply to thedetermination of both Transition Width and Feature Width. The subject ofFeature Width will be taken up following the conclusion of thisdiscussion of Transition Width. Accordingly, the next step discussed is904, is directed to calculation of the Transition Width. In step 904,the maximum value of the Euclidian Color Derivative (“E.C.D._(max)”),and its corresponding x value (“X_(max)”) is calculated using suitableimage processing software. E.C.D._(max) represents the maximum averagerate of change of E as a function of distance (x) along a swath 50pixels wide extending perpendicularly into the boundary region or,correspondingly, the slope ΔE/ΔX at its maximum value (=ΔE_(max)/ΔX).Recognizing the equivalence of these two slope leads to settingE.C.D._(max)=ΔE_(max)/ΔX, from which it follows thatΔX=Transition Width=[ΔE _(max) /E.C.D. _(max)]

Step 906 of FIG. 47C is directed to calculation of Feature Width. Simplystated, Feature Width is merely the minimum direct distance across afeature or pattern element, as measured from those points within theopposing boundary regions where the color is most quickly transitioningbetween the pattern areas adjacent to the respective boundary regions(using the X_(max) values associated with Transition Widthcalculations). Graphically, the concept of Feature Width is depicted inschematic and abbreviated form in FIGS. 52 and 53, in which the formerdepicts a Feature Width determination in a feature having TransitionWidths loosely corresponding to that of FIG. 49 and the latter depicts aFeature Width determination in a feature having Transition Widthsloosely corresponding to that of FIG. 50.

The process is described in more detail in FIG. 46A, which begins with anarrow pattern element, shown at 820A, defined by boundary regions 820Band 820C in scan area 821A. All the subsequent image processing stepsare substantially the same as were discussed above in connection withFIG. 46, except that one skilled in the art will recognize that the twoboundary regions that define the feature need to be dealt with. Theresulting images are different, notably resulting in diagrams 840Athrough 850A, in which the finite difference image shows the presence oftwo distinct boundary regions confining the narrow pattern element, withthe corresponding derivative line profiles, in most cases, exhibiting abimodal appearance where it is assumed that each mode represents asingle boundary region. If, for example, a third color is formed withina boundary region, there may be more than one mode within that singleboundary region. Note that in the image processing indicated in FIGS.47A-47C, all of the operations performed on the single boundary regionto determine the Transition Width are also performed on each of the twinboundary regions, including the calculation of a Euclidian ColorDerivative (step 900). Following this step, however, two separate valuesfor X_(max) (i.e., X_(max 1)and X_(max2)) are calculated (see FIG. 47C,step 906). The Feature Width is simply the scalar difference betweenX_(max1) and X_(max2), taken as an absolute value.

Preparation and Patterning of Textiles

Using the above techniques, measurements were made on a variety ofsubstrates, using the patterning systems described above: the preferredpatterning system (“PREF”), a representative example of the alternativedrop-on-demand patterning system (“DOD”), and a representative exampleof the recirculating patterning system (“RECIRC”). A total of fivesubstrates were used, representing a reasonable sampling of currentfloor covering substrates, with construction and process-relatedcharacteristics as set forth in Table 1. TABLE 1 SUBSTRATE SUBSTRATESUBSTRATE SUBSTRATE SUBSTRATE A B C D E Product Type Bonded Cut PileTufted Loop Tufted Cut Tufted Cut Tufted Cut Pile Pile Pile FinishedFace 796 640.3 1355 1305.9 1364.4 Weight (g/m²) Finished Pile 0.442 (50%of tufts) 0.437 cm 0.754 1.39 0.709 Height (cm) (50% of tufts) 0.556 cmTufting Gauge 528.3 393.7 393.7 315 315 (Tufting Needles Per Meter)Stitches Per 393.7 422 439 425.2 433 Meter Chemical Fiber Nylon 6,6yarns Nylon 6,6 yarns Nylon 6,6 yarns Nylon 6,6 yarns Wool, Nylon Type6,6 yarns Piled Yarn Type Solutia staple type 198X Two Filament yarnsmake Solutia staple type 198X DuPont 100% Filament, Lyles 80/20 cutterblend. 7.5 inch up tufts: 1120 Denier cutter blend, 7.5 inch antistat,Type 846, Semi- Wool Nylon (19.1 cm) staple, 19 dpf Solutia type KET and1315 (19.1 cm) staple, 19 dpf dull, trilobal, 17 dpf Denier Solutia typeCBT Piled Yarn Turns 1.77 1.77 1.77 1.97 2.26 Per Centimeter Carpet YarnMass 0.203 0.15 0.203 0.154 0.259 Per Length (Grams Per Meter)Manufacturing 0.16-0.24 0.16-0.24 0.29-0.46 0.46-0.56 0.24-0.46 PrintingWet Pickup Range (grams/cm²)

It is noted that the pile height information given above generally doesnot correspond to the height of the tuft above the backing (the exposedpile height), but rather to the length of yarn used in the manufacturingprocess. The measurements of exposed pile height, as measured from thepoint of attachment to the backing surface (i.e., the proximal end ofthe pile element) for each of the five substrates of this study were:approximately 0.35 cm for Substrate A, approximately 0.37 cm forSubstrate B, approximately 0.73 cm for Substrate C, approximately 1.07cm for Substrate D, and approximately 0.71 cm for Substrate E. As usedherein, pile height shall refer to exposed pile height, corresponding tothe length of the pile elements as measured from their proximal to theirdistal ends (i.e., the pile element tip). It should also be understoodby those skilled in the art that the substrates used herein wereselected to represent a broad range of carpet substrates of broadlysimilar face weight, pile height, fiber type. It is believed that theresults obtained herein are generally applicable to similar substrateshaving the same general fiber types, particularly those for which faceweights and pile heights are roughly similar, e.g., those for which faceweights and pile heights are within about 30% of those substrates listedin Table 1.

It should be noted that, for purposes of gauging the potentialperformance of a high definition patterning system such as is disclosedherein, Substrate A, above, was considered most likely to produce goodtest results due to its relative uniformity as a printing surface.

For each of the above-listed substrates, other experimental variables orparameters were present each time a sample pattern was made. Each ofthese parameters are listed and commented upon below.

Patterning Machine: Three different machines were used for mostsubstrates: (1) the preferred drop-on-demand, fixed-head machine(identified as “PREF”) described in detail herein, (2) a commercial,readily available drop-on-demand machine (identified as “DOD”) having atraversing head, as described above (not used with patterning SubstrateE), and (3) a commercial, recirculating fixed head machine (identifiedas “RECIRC”), also as described above. As a practical matter, theconsequences of this choice affected both the dispensing technique (typevalve, applicator motion relative to the substrate, etc.) as well as theviscosity and composition of the dye used (the recirculating system useslow viscosity dyes and is somewhat surfactant-intolerant). Print gauge(d.p.i.) is also determined by machine choice: both the PREF and RECIRCmachines are 20 gauge, while the DOD machine is 16 gauge (gaugemeasurements are nominal, with no accommodation for the effects ofsubstrate topology and dye migration). This means a 1 pixel-wide linewould be slightly larger in physical width for the DOD device ascompared with the others, assuming no on-substrate dye migrationeffects.

Direction: Because of the various velocity components introduced by thepatterning device that could influence (for better or worse) the precisetargeting of dye on the substrate, the test bars shown in FIG. 40 wereactually printed on the substrate in a first orientation with respect tothe print head, as well as in a second orientation, with the testpattern turned 90°, with one orientation being parallel to the tuft lineof the substrates analyzed herein. In this way, any advantage ordisadvantage due to feature orientation relative to dye stream movementas the dye is dispensed onto the substrate could be noted. Accordingly,the Figures will list a “Dir” parameter, with values of “hor” indicatingthat the long axis of the rectangles comprising the test bars wereparallel to the direction of conveyor travel, or “ver” indicating thatthe long axis of the rectangles comprising the test bars wereperpendicular to the direction of conveyor travel. The term“directionally averaged” as applied to Transition Width or Feature Widthdata means that the data were collected with the pattern feature orelement, or the associated boundary regions, in two orthogonalorientations, and the data were averaged over the two directions (e.g.,parallel and perpendicular to the edge of the substrate). Similarorthogonal measurements and subsequent averaging may also apply to themeasurement of drop dimensions, where appropriate. It shall beunderstood for the following discussion that the directionaldesignations of horizontal and vertical, as used to describe theorientation of printed pattern elements, have a particular meaning. Ahorizontal orientation (for the whole printed bar pattern) shallindicate that the bars (or lines) are printed in a direction parallel tothe substrate transport direction through the printer. A verticalorientation (for the whole printed bar pattern) shall indicate that thebars (or lines) are printed in a direction perpendicular to thesubstrate transport direction through the printer.

In order to numerically characterize the performance of the variouspatterning systems with respect to direction, the term Isotropy Indexmay be used. This term is simply the larger of the two quotientsobtained by dividing the value of one parameter (e.g., Feature Width orTransition Width) in one direction by the same parameter in theorthogonal direction and, accordingly, will always be a number greaterthan 1. This quotient can be calculated for either Transition Width orFeature Width.

Color: In the discussion concerning dominant boundary colors above, itwas noted that the presence of a dominant boundary color means that thecolor that is much darker, or that has a much higher concentration, hasa much greater influence on the appearance of the boundary region thanis observed when only non-dominant colors are involved. In reality,color dominance is a relative phenomenon: a color may be distinctlydominant if paired with a first color and significantly less so if,instead, it is paired with a second color. Because of the difficulty ingeneralizing this dominant color interaction, a variety of differentcolor combinations involving a dominant color were used in themeasurements. In each combination, the first named color denotes thecolor of the pattern element or feature and the second named colorindicates the color of the “background” or surrounding area within whichthe feature is isolated. Dominant color combinations used are as follows(the color considered dominant in the pairing is named first):

-   -   Red-Green    -   Black-Red    -   Yellow-Beige    -   Brown-Beige    -   Green-Beige    -   Black-Beige    -   Red-Beige

While brown is considered dominant within a brown-beige pairing, ittends to migrate less readily than other colors, e.g., colors such asred, black, yellow, and greens that are relatively slow-fixing dyes, forthe experiments and measurements reported herein. Accordingly, theselatter colors were found to be more likely to be involved in classicdominant color boundary behavior because of their greater mobility (theytend to migrate across borders), or their tendency to dominate aninterface by resisting dilution by other colors, or both. Contrariwise,the brown—beige pairing was found to provide a reasonable surrogate forinteractions involving substantially such less-dominant colors, whichform a great many of the boundary color interactions—perhaps amajority—found in commercial textile patterns, particularly in carpets,rugs, mats, and other floor coverings. In such pairings, both dyesinvolved tend to fix quickly and are less water soluble, and thereforetend to migrate from their assigned destination pixel to a lesserdegree. When such dyes do migrate and mix, neither dye visuallydominates, i.e., their blend is visually intermediate with respect tothe two dyes.

In connection with the investigation of Transition Width and FeatureWidth, the above color combinations used in the reverse sense (i.e., thecolor considered non-dominant in the combination representing thepattern element or feature and the color considered dominant in thecombination representing the background, for example, Green-Red,Red-Black, etc.) were also tested. This was done to account for the factthat, where narrow features are involved, the influence of thebackground can be profound—a dominant color as a background color caneffectively “squeeze” a narrow feature dyed in a non-dominant color,perhaps to extinction.

Wet Pickup: Wet pickup is merely a measure of the quantity of dye thatis applied per unit area on the substrate. Because of the known generalrelationship between increased wet pickup and decreased ability toreproduce fine detail due to the attendant wicking, it was necessary tomeasure typical values of this variable for each patterning machine andmake the selected values applicable to all of the patterning machines.Accordingly, for purposes of the studies reported herein, reasonableoperational wet pickup ranges were determined for each patterningmachine (and therefore each dye system) and each substrate. These rangeswere then compared, and a common range of substrate-specific wet pickups(as listed in Table 1) was established that could be used on a specificsubstrate with any of the patterning machines. Unless otherwisespecified, these ranges, specified in Table 1, were used to generate thedata reported in FIGS. 55 through 122. Given the capabilities of currenttextile metered-jet print technologies, it can be noted that the PREFpatterning system is capable of patterning a textile substrate having aface weight substantially below that of Substrate A, listed in Table 1,with high definition and no dye flooding. This stems from an ability todispense low dye drop volumes (e.g. volumes within the range of about0.08 g/cm² to about 0.04 g/cm² or less) reliably and accurately, ascompared with the RECIRC and DOD systems, or any other known comparablemetered-jet system specifically designed to pattern textiles.

Face Fiber Type: Arguably, the two most popular fibers for use inpatterned floor coverings are wool and nylon 6,6. The former has anunparalleled reputation for luxury and richness of color, while thelatter, even more popular than wool, excels in its ability to wear anddye well. For purposes of the measurements made herein, four differentsubstrates (Substrates A through D), each containing nylon 6,6 fibers,were used, as well as one sample (Substrate E), containing an 80% wool,20% nylon 6,6 blend. Substrates A through D were selected to berepresentative of a broad cross-section of commercially available floorcoverings having a pile construction predominantly comprising nylon 6,6fibers, and the term “nylon 6,6” will refer to such substrates.Substrate E was carefully selected to have a construction capable ofproviding a reasonable basis for comparison with the various nylon 6,6samples and for the conclusions relating to such comparison, discussedbelow. Substrate E is intended to be representative of a broad class ofcommercially available floor coverings having a pile constructionpredominantly comprised of wool, with pile heights and face weightsroughly comparable to those of Substrate C, and the term “wool” willrefer to such substrates. Generally, wool fibers tend to resist, to agreater degree, absorption of the dyes used herein for patterning. Thischaracteristic, likely due to the natural presence of lanolin in woolfibers (even following rigorous and largely effective lanolin-removingsteps), can result in a tendency for the applied dyes to form puddles onor near the surface and for those dyes to bleed or migrate laterally,thereby degrading pattern definition. This condition was consistentlyobserved in the patterns formed on Substrate E, which will be discussedin greater detail below.

Edge Treatment: As a feature in each of the patterning machines tested,it is possible to reduce to some degree the quantity of dye applied tothe edge of a feature. This ability is desirable because it candiscourage uncontrolled wicking or diffusion beyond the feature edge andthereby encourage the formation of an abrupt transition within theboundary region to the color of the adjacent pattern area (the edge ofwhich might have had a similar treatment). Although the flexibilityavailable varies among the machines, in each case efforts were made tooptimize, to the extent allowed by the equipment, the delivery of dye tothe edges of the test bar so as to minimize the width of the boundaryregion, maximize the abruptness of the color transition within thatboundary region, and thereby maximize the definition of the renderedpattern. Accordingly, since edge treatment (to the extent available) wasimplemented in all cases, no distinctions on the graphs are maderegarding this parameter.

Dye Penetration: As defined above, dye penetration (and the related termfractional penetration) refers to the extent to which the dye applied tothe surface of the substrate in a pattern configuration has migratedalong the length of the yarns or textile fibers (“pile elements”)comprising the pile in the general direction of the proximal portion ofthe pile element (i.e., the point of attachment of the pile element tothe substrate back) and dyed such pile elements in a substantiallyuniform manner. Specifically, as measured in connection with the datareported below, dye penetration was taken as a measure of the distancethe pattern-applied dye has traveled along the length of the individualpile elements and effectively uniformly dyed those pile elements withoutthe appearance along the length of the pile element of streaks, bands,striations, significant changes of hue (e.g., due to reduced dyeconcentration or chromatographic effects), or other signs of incomplete,non-uniform dyeing. Substrates that show relatively shallow dyepenetration may show complete dyeing near the surface of the undisturbedsubstrate, but show incompletely dyed pile elements (with respect to thepattern-applied dye) when the pile surface is brushed or parted. This isdepicted diagrammatically in FIGS. 54A and 54B. In the former, the depthof dye penetration is taken to be at the level of the dotted line. Inthe latter, which is much more uniform and more representative ofPREF-patterned products, the level of dye penetration is not onlygreater, but is more uniform, resulting in a dye penetration level againindicated at the dotted line. For purposes herein, commerciallyacceptable dye penetration, expressed as a fraction of exposed fiber oryarn length (i.e., fractional penetration) was assumed to be 50% orgreater for pile constructions comprised predominantly of nylon 6,6, and40% or greater for pile constructions comprised predominantly of wool.

Dye Formulations: Dye formulations were as indicated in the Examples.

Order of Application of Dyes: In each case, the dyes were applied in thefollowing order: Beige, Brown, Black, Red, Green, Yellow.

The data discussed below was generated using the samples prepared inaccordance with the following examples.

Example 1

Sample Preparation and Printing Using the PREF Printing Technology:

The specific dyestuffs that made up the colors that were printed forthis evaluation are shown in the table below. The name of the color, asreferred to in the specification, is given for reference. ColorConstituent Dyes (Dye, g/L) Beige Erionyl Yellow MR (0.026 g/L) IsolanBordeaux R (0.054 g/L) Erionyl Black MR (0.019 g/L) Brown Erionyl YellowMR (0.791 g/L) Isolan Bordeaux R (0.077 g/L) Erionyl Black MR (0.105g/L) Black Erionyl Yellow MR (0.902 g/L) Isolan Bordeaux R (0.279 g/L)Erionyl Black MR (3.906 g/L) Red Isolan Red SRL (3.786 g/L) NylosanYellow N7GL (1.817 g/L) Green Nylosan Yellow N7GL (1.185 g/L) LanasetBlue 5G (0.699 g/L) Yellow Supranol Yellow (3.0 g/L)

Erionyl Yellow MR, Erionyl Black MR, and Nylosan Yellow N7GL are allavailable from Ciba Specialty Chemicals Corp. of Highpoint, N.C. IsolanBordeaux R, Isolan Red SRL, Lanaset Blue 5G, and Supranol Yellow areavailable from DyStar LP of Charlotte, N.C.

To form each of the process dyes listed in the tables, the specifieddyestuffs were added to a stock solution that was prepared by adding thefollowing components to deionized water:

-   -   1. 1 g/L of a surfactant SynFac 9214, manufactured by Milliken &        Company    -   2. 2 g/L of a defoamer FT-16, manufactured by Milliken & Company    -   3. 0.5 g/L of a bactericide, such as Kathon®, manufactured by        Rohm and Haas of Philadelphia, Pa.    -   4. 1 g/L of Sodium Sulfate salt (Na₂SO₄), distributed by Fisher        Scientific of Atlanta, Ga., or Sigma-Aldrich, of St. Louis, Mo.    -   5. Enough xanthan gum thickener, Keltrol T®, manufactured by CP        Kelco of Wilmington, Del., to provide a viscosity of        approximately 1200 centipoise for the resulting paste, as        measured using an LVT Brookfield viscometer using spindle 3 at        30 rpm.

Unpatterned carpet tiles (36″×36″) of Substrates A through E wereobtained. These carpet tiles were brushed lightly with a medium bristlebrush to align the tufts and remove loose fibers. The carpet tiles werethen placed into an atmospheric steamer operating at a saturated steamtemperature of 100 degrees Celsius. The tiles were processed in thesteamer for a period of 15 seconds to loft the yarn tufts and give amore uniform print surface. The carpet tiles were then treated with achemical wet out comprising surfactant and polycationic agents that havethe effect of reducing the lateral spreading of the dyes on the surfaceof the carpet tile as well as holding the colorants near the surface ofthe carpet so that the surface fibers are more uniformly dyed, resultingin a less frosty appearance of the surface print. The specificformulation of the chemical wetout, prepared in deionized water, was asfollows:

-   -   1. 1.5 g/L of a polycationic agent, such as Polycat M-30®, as        available from Peach State Labs, Inc. of Rome, Ga.    -   2. 3.0 g/L Syn-O-Wet 324, manufactured by Milliken & Company.

The amount of chemical applied to the surface was approximately 20% ofthe face weight of the substrate. For Substrates A and B, a wet pickupof 16 mg/cm² was applied. For Substrates C, D, and E, a wet pickup of 27mg/cm² was applied.

The tiles were then placed on the printing platform of the printingmachine and the patterning was applied. The print pattern informationfor the bar-element patterns was designed and encoded with an internalMilliken software package for pixel-based pattern design that tookadvantage of the 20 gauge (i.e., nominal 20 dpi) patterning capabilityof the PREF system. The pattern was optimized through visual assessmentto provide sharp edge definition and optimize the gauge performance ofthe bar element pattern. The bar pattern was printed in two orthogonaldirections to test for differences in the print quality in the machineand cross-machine direction (i.e., print quality anisotropy).

After the patterning was applied, the surface temperature of the tileswas raised to 200° F. by passage through an RF oven, Model 70301,manufactured by Radio Frequency Corporation, with an array height of 50mm, for a period of 6.5 minutes to preheat the dyes; this resulted inmore saturated colors and sharper pattern edges. The tiles were thenplaced into the same steamer as above for a period of 5 minutes (8minutes for Substrate E) to complete the fixation of the dyestuffs tothe substrate yarns. The tiles were subsequently placed on a washplatform and saturated with a spray of water to help remove excess dyes(i.e., dyes that did not fix to the carpet yarns), stock solution, etc.The wet tiles were then run through a nip to remove excess water andplaced in a dryer, with a dwell temperature of approximately 340 degreesFahrenheit for a period of about 10 minutes. Substrates C, D and E werethen sheared on their surface to remove loose fibers and make the topsurface more uniform.

Example 2

Sample Preparation and Printing Using the RECIRC Printing Technology:

The specific dyestuffs that made up the colors that were printed for theRECIRC evaluation are the same as were used for the PREF evaluation. Toform each of the print colors for the RECIRC system, which requires alower viscosity stock solution, the specified dyestuffs were added to aslightly modified stock solution that formed the remainder of the stocksolution. The remainder of the stock solution was prepared by adding thefollowing components to deionized water:

-   -   1. 1 g/L of a defoamer FT-24, manufactured by Milliken & Company    -   2. 0.5 g/L of a bacteriocide, such as Kathon®, manufactured by        Rohm and Haas of Philadelphia, Pa.    -   3. Enough xanthan gum thickener, Keizan S®, manufactured by CP        Kelco of Wilmington, Del., to provide a viscosity for the        resulting paste of approximately 600 centipoise, as measured        using an LVT Brookfield viscometer, using spindle 3 at 30 rpm.        For Substrate E, the xanthan gum thickener used for printing was        Keltrol T®, manufactured by CP Kelco of Wilmington, Del. All        other ingredients were the same.

The pastes and dyestuffs were thoroughly mixed to make the final processcolorants.

Substrates A through E, in the form of 36″×36″ carpet tiles, were used.These carpet tiles were brushed lightly with a medium bristle brush toalign the tufts and remove loose fibers. The carpet tiles were thentreated with a chemical wetout comprising surfactant and polycationicagents that have the effect of reducing the lateral spreading of thedyes on the surface of the carpet tile as well as holding the colorantsnear the surface of the carpet so that the surface fibers are moreuniformly dyed, resulting in a less frosty appearance of the surfaceprint. The specific formulation of the chemical wetout, prepared indeionized water, is as given in Example 1.

-   -   1. 1.5 g/L of a polycationic agent, such as Polycat M-30® as        available from Peach State Labs, Inc. of Rome, Ga.    -   2. 3.0 g/L Syn-O-Wet 324, manufactured by Milliken & Company.

The amount of chemical applied to the surface is approximately 20% ofthe face weight of the substrate. For Substrates A and B, a wet pickupof about 16 mg/cm² of the chemistry was applied. For Substrates C, D,and E, a wet pickup of about 27 mg/cm² was applied.

The tiles were then placed on the printing platform of the RECIRCmachine and the patterning was applied. The print pattern informationfor the bar-element patterns was designed and encoded with an internalMilliken software package for pixel-based pattern design that tookadvantage of the 20 gauge (i.e., nominal 20 dpi) printing capability ofthe RECIRC system. The pattern was optimized through visual assessmentto provide sharp edge definition and optimize the gauge performance ofthe bar element pattern. The bar pattern was printed in two orthogonaldirections to test for anisotropies in the print quality in the machineand cross-machine direction.

The carpet tiles were then placed into an atmospheric steamer operatingat a saturated steam temperature of 100 degrees Celsius for a period of5 minutes to complete the fixation of the dyestuffs to the substrateyarns, with the exception of Substrate E, which was retained in thesteamer for a period of 8 minutes. The tiles were subsequently placed ona wash platform and saturated with a spray of water to help removeexcess dyes (i.e., dyes that did not fix to the carpet yarns) and theremaining print paste. The wet tiles were then run through a nip toremove excess water and placed in a dryer, with a dwell temperature ofapproximately 340 degrees Fahrenheit for a period of about 10 minutes.Substrates C, D and E were then sheared on their surface to remove loosefibers and make the top surface more uniform.

Example 3

Sample Preparation and Printing Using the DOD Printing Technology:

The specific dyestuffs that made up the colors that were printed for theevaluation of DOD print technology are the same as in Example 1. To formeach of the print colors, the specified dyestuffs (as in Example 1) wereadded to a stock solution different from the previous two examples. Thestock solution was prepared by adding the following components todeionized water:

-   -   1. 1 g/L of citric acid, available from Fisher Scientific, of        Atlanta Ga., or Sigma-Aldrich, of St. Louis Mo.    -   2. 1 g/L of a defoamer, NoFome® available from Bayer of        Pittsburgh, Pa.    -   3. 0.5 g/L of a surfactant, Tanasperse CJ®, available from Bayer        of Pittsburgh, Pa.    -   4. Enough acrylic thickener, Tanaprint ST 160C®, manufactured by        Bayer of Pittsburgh, Pa., to provide a viscosity of        approximately 1200 centipoise for the stock solution, as        measured using an LVT Brookfield viscometer using spindle 3 at        30 rpm. The concentration of Tanaprint varied with the amount of        dyestuff in the following way: Beige (7.8 g/L), Brown (8.1 g/L),        Black (11.7 g/L), Red (12.5 g/L), Green (10 g/L), and Yellow        (8.7 g/L).

The stock solution and dyestuffs were thoroughly mixed to make the finalprocess colorants.

Substrates A through E, in the form of 18″×36″ carpet tiles, were used.These carpet tiles were brushed lightly with a medium bristle brush toalign the tufts and remove loose fibers. The carpet tiles were thenplaced into an atmospheric steamer operating at a saturated steamtemperature of 100 degrees Celsius. The tiles were processed in thesteamer for a period of 15 seconds, to loft the yarn tufts and give amore uniform print surface.

The tiles were then placed on the printing platform of the printingmachine and the patterning was applied. The print pattern informationfor the bar-element patterns was designed and encoded with an internalMilliken software package for pixilated-pattern design. This file wasconverted to the DOD specific design code. It was necessary to convertfrom the 20 gauge designs used for PREF and RECIRC to a 16-gauge designfor use with the DOD system. The technology allowed for reducing the dyeat the edges by 50% to try to optimize the edge sharpness. Also, thecolor-dispensing valves could be equipped with orifice plates with twoor three orifices that define the streams of dye (dye jets).Representative bar patterns were printed with each of these set-ups. Thebar pattern was printed in two orthogonal directions to test foranisotropies in the print quality in the machine and cross-machinedirection.

The carpet tiles were then placed into an atmospheric steamer operatingat a saturated steam temperature of 100 degrees Celsius for a period of5 minutes to complete the fixation of the dyestuffs to the substrateyarns. The tiles were subsequently placed on a wash platform andsaturated with a spray of water to help remove excess dyes (i.e., dyesthat did not fix to the carpet yarns) and the remaining print paste. Thewet tiles were subsequently run through a nip to remove excess water andplaced in a dryer, with a dwell temperature of approximately 340 degreesFahrenheit for a period of about 10 minutes. Substrates C, D and E werethen sheared on their surface to remove loose fibers and make the topsurface more uniform.

It should be noted that the level of patterning performance obtainedwith the DOD and RECIRC machines was confirmed to be generallyconsistent with that demonstrated by samples available in themarketplace.

Discussion of Data

FIGS. 55 through 255 display data, variously presented, gathered in thecourse of making measurements of pattern characteristics on theabove-described substrates using the above-described metered jetpatterning devices. Due to the quantity of data, an attempt has beenmade to organize the presentation of these data in a way thatfacilitates an appreciation for the significance and inter-relationshipof the data, as well as the formation and discussion of conclusionssupported by the data.

Data from each of the five substrates are presented in respective setsof four bar charts, showing:

-   -   1. Wet Pickup Averaged data    -   2. Directionally and Wet Pickup Averaged data    -   3. Minimum data    -   4. Directionally averaged Minimum data

As can be concluded from a review of these bar charts, the threedifferent patterning technologies (PREF, RECIRC, and DOD) may providesomewhat equivalent Transition Width (“TW”) and Feature Width (“FW”)performance at very low wet pickups, for which the penetration of dyeinto the pile is very low. As the wet pickup is increased to provide therequisite pile penetration (expressed as a fraction or percentage andreferred to as “fractional penetration”), drastic differences in qualityof the three print technologies appear. The PREF technology providessomewhat slowly decreasing (i.e., improving) Transition Width (“TW”) andFeature Width (“FW”) performance with higher wet pickup. In contrast,the print performance for RECIRC and DOD patterning systems becomesrelatively worse at high wet pickups. To demonstrate this point, FIGS.55-133 include TW and FW data from multiple wet pickup print trials thatwere averaged to provide the data on the chart, and are thereforereferred to as “wet pickup-averaged” Transition Widths and FeatureWidths. The range of wet pickup values applicable to each substrate forwhich the data is averaged is indicated in Table 1 as the manufacturingwet pickup ranges, and represent those wet pickups that are necessary toprovide reliable dye penetration (as defined herein) along at least 50%of the length of the pile elements (for Substrate E, a criterion of atleast 40% was used, in recognition of its inherent resistance to dyeingusing the dyes described herein), as is generally required to preventthe showing of undyed fibers or yarns to a commercially unacceptabledegree. The measured Wet Pickup Averaged Transition Widths and FeatureWidths are shown in the charts for two orthogonal directions, whichallows for a characterization of whether the print quality depends onprint direction. By comparing the data in this way, differences in printquality for different color (dye) pairings becomes apparent.

A variant of the preceding charts is the Directionally and Wet PickupAveraged data charts. These charts result from taking the Wet PickupAveraged data in the two orthogonal directions and finding the averagevalue for each color in the two orthogonal directions. For the RECIRCand DOD printing technologies, there tends to be a consistent “good” and“bad” (in a relative sense) direction for printing. In contrast, theprint quality of the PREF printing technology tends to be isotropic (tothe extent allowed by the substrate) and thus print quality in either oftwo orthogonal print directions tend to be equally “good”. Thedirectional average is useful because it gives an overall sense ofwhether a printed pattern will appear sharp and be able to support finedetails regardless of the orientation of the pattern elements on theprinted substrate surface.

In a separate chart, the minimum Transition Widths and Feature Widthsthat were measured over the wet pickup ranges indicated in Table 1 areshown. The minimum values tend to be measured on substrates printed withthe relatively low wet pickups within the range of wet pickups thatproduce acceptable fractional penetration. These data are also presentedin two orthogonal directions. These charts represent the best (i.e.,smallest) values for Transition Width and Feature Width that wereobtained within the wet pickup ranges of Table 1. These values are alsoshown in directionally averaged form, for the reasons indicated above.

In the Examples, it was indicated that bar or line elements ofsequentially increasing width were printed with the various colorcombinations to demonstrate the inherent differences of the three printtechnologies in rendering small scale details as well as large scalepattern elements in a printed pattern. In the presentation of bar chartdata as well as other subsequent data, the terms “1 element feature” and“5 element feature” are used. The 1 element feature is a feature that isintended to be 1 printed pixel wide, i.e., the pattern calls for theassignment of a given color to a feature having a minimum dimensionequal to the nominal gauge of the patterning device. The 5 elementfeature is, by extension, one that is intended to be 5 printed pixels inits smallest dimension. The physical size of a single pixel depends uponthe nominal gauge of the printing technology used. In the PREF system,dye applicators are spaced along a line with a density of 20 applicatorsper inch, corresponding to a nominal gauge of 0.05 inch. Applicatorspacings for the other technologies are 0.05 inch (nominal 20 gauge) forthe RECIRC system and 0.0625 inch (nominal 16 gauge) for the DOD system.Measurements of the Transition Width and Feature Width for the 1 elementfeature are direct measurements of the capability of the printingsystems to render a fine detailed element that is 1 pixel in itssmallest dimension.

A 2 element feature is defined in a similar way, except that the desiredpattern feature is intended to have a minimum dimension equal to twopixels (e.g., 0.1 inch for the PREF and RECIRC systems, and 0.125 inchfor the DOD system). The 2 element feature was intended to simulatesituations in which relatively fine detail was required, but with ameasure of confidence that the detail would be observable, regardless ofthe influence of dominant colors, uncooperative pile constructions, orother factors that might serve to disguise or obliterate the desiredfeature.

When attempting to render a 1 or 2 element feature, the entire featuremay be affected by migration of dyes from the boundary area, thusaffecting the Transition Width and Feature Width for that patternelement. When a pattern element is large enough that dye within the twoboundary regions that define opposite edges of the feature cannotinteract with each other, there begins to be little difference in theTransition Widths measured for the boundary region, and the patternelement dimension is essentially “semi-infinite.” Therefore, forpurposes herein, the measurement of 5 element Transition Widths directlymeasure the ability of each of the print technologies to rendersemi-infinite boundaries, and thus it is assumed that the 5 elementTransition Widths apply with reasonable accuracy to all pattern elementsthat are 3 or more printed pixel elements wide. When pattern areas ofthis size are rendered, there appears to be little visible differencebetween the Feature Widths associated with the various printtechnologies. However, the PREF system delivers, on average,substantially superior Transition Width measurements for all substratesmeasured.

In the Examples, it was specified that six representative colors wereused to print the bar patterns that characterize the three printtechnologies. Seven specific color pairings were used: Red/Beige,Black/Beige, Green/Beige, Brown/Beige, Yellow/Beige, Red/Black, andRed/Green. The following is an example, using Red and Beige, of what wasdone using all of the above color pairings. The bar patterns for theRed/Beige color pairing were printed first with the 1 and 5 pixel widefeatures being red on a beige background, and then with those same-sizedfeatures being beige on a red background. Because the 5 element featuresrepresent a semi-infinite pattern area (i.e., is the equivalent of a“background” area), the resulting 5 element Transition Width for a beigefeature on a red background was deemed to be basically equivalent to the5 element Transition Width for a red feature on a beige background (bothmerely simulating two adjacent large-scale areas). Therefore, only sevencolor combinations are shown on the 5 element Transition Width charts.

Again using red and beige, it will be noted from the 1 element (and 2element) Transition Width and Feature Width charts that the resultsobtained for a red 1 or 2 element feature on a beige background are verydifferent from the results obtained for a beige 1 or 2 element featureon a red background. Therefore, the results for all 14 color pairingsare shown for the 1 and 2 element Transition Width and Feature Widthcharts (seven color combinations with each of the two colors takingturns being respectively the feature or the background). This isnoteworthy because when a dominant dye is used, a 1 element feature ofthe dominant dye in a non-dominant background may be visuallydiscernable, but the 1 element feature of a non-dominant dye in adominant dye background may have such substantially increased TransitionWidths (and therefore substantially reduced relative contrast with itsneighbor) due to dye migration of the dominant dye across the boundaryas to be quite faint, or even entirely obliterated. The convention usedin the charts is to list the color of the pair that represents thefeature first, and the color that represents the background second.

It should be noted that the ability to render fine sharp details thatare substantially anisotropic (i.e., don't vary substantially withdirection), depends upon the printing substrate.

As such, it is noted that Substrate A is a dense, uniform print basewith a low, relatively stable pile surface that does not distort to asignificant degree the inherent patterning characteristics of the threeprinting systems, and, generally speaking, is the substrate best suitedto demonstrate the capabilities of a given printing system.

The Wet Pickup Averaged 5 Element Transition Width charts for theSubstrate A, FIG. 55, demonstrates the inherent anisotropies, ordirectional dependences, of the Transition Width for the RECIRC and DODprint systems. The RECIRC print system shows a consistent anisotropy forall of the color pairings shown. Note that the RECIRC systemconsistently renders a narrower Transition Width for features printed inthe designated horizontal (hor) direction. For a 1 element straight lineprinted with the RECIRC print system in the designated horizontaldirection, a single jet on the array prints the entire line and the dropfootprint is elongated (due to relative movement of the dye streamduring actuation, and other factors) in the same direction as the line.By comparison, the Transition Widths are consistently larger onsubstrate A for the features printed in the vertical (ver) direction.For a straight line printed with the RECIRC print system in thedesignated vertical direction, an array of neighboring jets is requiredto print the line and the drop footprint is elongated across theboundary of the line. This result is in keeping with the expectation ofthose skilled in the art of using a RECIRC-type printing system.

The Wet Pickup Averaged 5 Element Transition Width data for the DODprinting System on Substrate A (FIG. 55) also shows a consistentanisotropy for all of the color groupings shown, but in a differentdirection. The DOD system consistently renders a narrower TransitionWidth for features printed in the vertical (ver) direction. For astraight line printed with the DOD print system in the designatedvertical direction, the traversing color-metering head prints the lineon a single sweep of the print head across the substrate. By comparison,the 1 element Transition Widths are consistently larger on substrate Afor the features printed in the horizontal (hor) direction. For astraight line printed with the DOD print system in the designatedhorizontal direction, the traversing color-metering head prints the lineas it indexes forward and attempts to print at the same point in itsraster sweep (multiple raster sweeps of the head produce the line). Thetiming of dye flow actuation as the head rasters across the patternneeds to be extremely well calibrated to get a good edge in this printdirection. This result is in keeping with the expectation of thoseskilled in the art of using this DOD printing system.

In contrast to the preceding discussion, the PREF print system providesa relatively direction-independent result. With few exceptions, theTransition Width values measured for all of the color groupings shown isnearly the same for the horizontal and vertical directions.

It is noted that this anisotropy also can be seen in the charts forminimum 5 element Transition Widths, shown in FIGS. 55-74. Theseanisotropy trends tend to apply to all five substrates, though notuniformly. It is noted that substrates with loops tend to have wickingchannels parallel to the print surface of the substrate, which arebelieved to draw dye along the surface of the substrate and promotedirectional differences. Also, a multi-leveled substrate topology mayserve to channel dyes away from their intended pixel location on thesubstrate. For substrates that have long pile elements, it is relativelyeasy for the upper portions of the pile elements to move away from theirinitial locations at the time of printing and therefore distort theinherent print properties imparted to the substrate by the various printtechnologies. Therefore, it is not surprising that substrate-specificeffects may mask the directional print-properties inherent in each ofthe print systems. As mentioned above, Substrate A appears generally tobe the most revealing of these various printing characteristics, becauseit provides few of the above masking structures.

Almost without exception, it can be seen from the Wet Pickup Averagedand Minimum 5 Element Transition Width charts that the PREF printingsystem is capable of rendering a boundary between large pattern areaswith a smaller Transition Width (and therefore a finer edge) than theDOD and RECIRC systems for any given color combination. There areinstances where one direction can be printed with the DOD or RECIRCsystems such that the 5 element Transition Width is comparable to thePREF results, but usually the orthogonal direction for that competingtechnology is worse than that for PREF. This result becomes very clearwhen looking at the directionally averaged charts. These directionallyaveraged (both Wet Pickup averaged and Minimum) 5 element TransitionWidth charts, contained in FIGS. 55-74, demonstrate that the PREF datais almost universally superior to the RECIRC and DOD print systems foreach color combination at a boundary.

While the numeric values that represent the 5 element Transition Widthsfor the different color combinations vary over a range, the PREF 5element Transition Widths tend to be more uniformly clustered.Furthermore, the PREF patterning system can be distinguished because itis able to generate, for any specified substrate, the smallest 5 elementTransition Widths for some color combinations. In fact, the lowest 5element Transition Widths tend to be for the brown/beige color pairing.This is significant because both brown and beige are fairly lowconcentration dyes that do not readily migrate out of their designatedpixel locations. The interaction of these colors in this color pairingis considered by those skilled in art as being closely representative ofthe vast majority of color interactions normally found in patternedtextiles. Therefore, the ability to render low 5 element TransitionWidths with this color pairing is significant for printing substrateswith the PREF patterning system in general. It is further noted thatmost of the colors represented in these data are colors that tend tobleed out of their pixel area—for instance, reds, blacks, greens, andyellows all tend to migrate out of their assigned pixel location fairlyreadily, and are therefore considered difficult to print (at lest iffine detail is desired). Therefore, it is believed that, taken together,the results using relatively easy and well as relatively difficult colorcombinations, generates data that effectively brackets the capability ofthese systems.

To attempt to quantify the ability of PREF to render narrower 5 elementTransition Widths, FIGS. 75-79 show the minimum 5 element TransitionWidth data (either Wet Pickup Averaged or Minimum, in either orthogonaldirection or directionally averaged, and for all colors) obtained foreach substrate, plotted against the pile height (measured from tip toexposed base) for the corresponding substrate.

There are several reasons why one skilled in the art would expect thatthe Transition Width should increase with the pile height. A longer pileelement requires more dye to pattern it with acceptably deep dyepenetration. When the larger amount of dye is dispensed onto the carpetsurface, there is a greater probability that it will form a bead orpuddle that is substantially larger than the pixel area that isdesignated for it. Therefore, there may be substantially more dyeoverlap between neighboring pixels. Furthermore, the larger amount ofdye on the surface makes it more probable that there will be some dyewicking in a lateral direction along the surface of the substrate. Inaddition, a longer pile element is more likely to be “floppy” and movefrom its “as-dyed” position, thus distorting the surface print andincreasing the Transition Width, on the average.

Looking at FIGS. 55-78, it is apparent that the best (i.e., minimum) 5element Transition Width for each of the 5 substrates is obtained withthe PREF patterning system. In each case, it is possible on the chartsto draw a line that separates the lowest value of 5 element TransitionWidth for the DOD and RECIRC technologies from the corresponding PREFvalues. Looking first at the data generated from the Substrates Athrough D (i.e., the nylon 6,6 pile) as shown in FIG. 77, the equationfor a separating line for the Minimum 5 Element Transition Width (in anydirection and for any of the listed color combinations) as a function ofpile height is as follows:(nylon 6,6): TW _(min, any direction)(cm)=0.15·[Measured Pile Height(cm)]+0.08

The corresponding line for the Directionally Averaged 5 ElementTransition Width, FIG. 78, is given by:(nylon 6,6) TW _(directionally averaged min)(cm)=0.18·[Measured PileHeight (cm)]+0.083

Looking at the data generated from Substrate E (i.e., the 80% wool/20%nylon 6,6 pile), the degree of dye penetration was typically less thanthe corresponding dye penetration observed in Substrates A through D(100% nylon 6,6 pile). As explained earlier, because of this resistanceto penetration observed with pile comprised of wool, there is a tendencyfor the dye to remain at or near the surface of the pile, therebyenhancing the opportunity for the dye to migrate or bleed laterally andcausing an increase in the Transition Width associated with that patternfeature, as compared with a similarly-constructed substrate with pileelements comprised primarily or exclusively of nylon 6,6.

As one skilled in the art would expect, this effect decreases withdecreasing pile height (pile penetration becomes equally easy regardlessof pile composition). Accordingly, as pile height approaches negligiblevalues, the observed Transition Width behavior for Substrate E rivalsthat observed for Substrates A through D, and the corresponding equationfor a separating line for the Minimum 5 Element Transition Width in anydirection versus pile height for Substrate E (FIG. 77) may be given by.(wool): TW _(min, any direction)(cm)=0.181·[Measured Pile Height(cm)]+0.08

The corresponding line for the Directionally Averaged 5 ElementTransition Width, FIG. 78, is given by(wool): TW _(directionally averaged min)(cm)=0.193·[Measured Pile Height(cm)]+0.083

Concerning the capability of the various printing systems to render finedetails in a pattern, the 1 element Feature Width data allows manydistinctions to be made. Generally, the statements and clarificationsthat were made previously for the five element Transition Width chartsapply to the 1 Element Transition Width data, with the followingclarifications. It is often the case that the 1 Element Transition Widthdata for certain reciprocal color combinations (e.g., red feature/beigebackground and beige feature/red background) is drastically different.More specifically, for the case where the non-dominant color is thefeature, the non-dominant feature is often overwhelmed by the dominantbackground dye that has migrated from the pixel location to which it wasassigned. Therefore, the 1 Element Transition Widths for thenon-dominant color feature with a dominant color background may besubstantially larger than the 1 element Transition Width for a dominantcolor feature on a non-dominant color background.

To see this fundamental difference in the charts, it is noted that thedominant color features are those with the following designations:red/beige, black/beige, green/beige, brown/beige, yellow/beige,black/red, and red/green, using the same convention as earlier to namethe feature color first. Therefore, the non-dominant color features are:beige/red, beige/black, beige/green, beige/brown, beige/yellow,red/black, and green/red. Because a non-dominant color feature may betotally overwhelmed by the dominant color forming the background, thealgorithms used herein to calculate Transition Widths and Feature Widthsoccasionally were unable to identify a feature where one was assigned bythe pattern. In these cases, no data appears on the bar chart for thatfeature. In other words, when no data appears on the bar chart (see, forexample, the absence of DOD data from the “Beige/Black” group ofhistograms in FIGS. 91, 93, 115, and 117), it is a result of thatnon-dominant color feature being totally overwhelmed by dye migrationfrom a neighboring (background) dominant dye color, making the featurevery difficult to see in the resulting printed pattern.

Looking at the Wet Pickup Averaged 1 Element Transition Width andMinimum 1 Element Transition Width data for Substrate A, FIGS. 79-82,there again is a general trend of print-direction anisotropy. Theanisotropies are the same as were described for the 5 Element TransitionWidth data, as would be expected. For the same reasons, this anisotropycan be hidden due to substrate effects, as described above. As for the 5Element Transition Width data, the PREF 1 Element Transition Width of agiven color combination is almost universally smaller (yielding sharperfine detail edges) on Substrates B through E, especially for thedominant color combinations (see FIGS. 79-102), than can be obtained forthe RECIRC and DOD printing systems. Because, for a 1 element feature,the whole feature can be dominated (and essentially obliterated) by themigration or incursion of dyes from the neighboring pixels, the 1Element Transition Widths may be somewhat larger than the 5 elementTransition Widths. The superiority of the PREF printing system can beclearly seen in the Directionally Averaged Wet Pickup Averaged andMinimum 1 Element Transition Width charts, contained in FIGS. 79-102,for each color combination, where again the PREF printing system tendsto have the tightest grouping of 1 element Transition Width values forall color combinations. This tight grouping is significant because, forall colors, generally sharper edges can be printed, resulting in overallsuperior print sharpness for a multicolored print pattern.

In the same manner as for the 5 Element Transition Width charts, thePREF system distinguishes itself by having the lowest 1 elementTransition Widths for any color combination. Therefore, more sharplydefined 1 element features can be rendered with the PREF printingsystem. To numerically quantify this fact, FIGS. 99-102 show the Minimum1 Element Transition Widths (these show both minimum values for the WetPickup Averaged and Minimum 1 Element Transition Widths in eachdirection for any color combination, as well as the MinimumDirectionally Averaged Wet Pickup and Minimum 1 Element TransitionWidths obtained for all color combinations) obtained for each substrate,plotted against the measured pile height for the correspondingsubstrate. These plots enable a line to be drawn that separates thesmallest 1 Element Transition Widths that the DOD and RECIRCtechnologies can print from the corresponding 1 Element TransitionWidths that the PREF printing system can generate. Considering first thedata for Substrates A through D, the equation for the separating linefor the Minimum 1 Element Transition Width in any direction versus pileheight, FIG. 101, is given below:(nylon 6,6) TW _(1 element, min, any direction)(cm)=0.202·[Measured PileHeight (cm)]+0.062

The corresponding line for the Directionally Averaged Minimum 1 ElementTransition Width, FIG. 102, is given by(nylon 6,6) TW_(1 element, directionally averaged min)(cm)=0.188·[Measured Pile Height(cm)]+0.091

Looking at the data generated from Substrate E (i.e., the 80% wool/20%nylon 6,6 pile), the degree of dye penetration was typically less thanthe corresponding dye penetration observed in Substrates A through D(100% nylon 6,6 pile). Because of this resistance to penetrationobserved with pile comprised of wool, there is a tendency for the dye toremain on or near the surface of the pile, thereby enhancing theopportunity for the dye to migrate or bleed laterally and causing anincrease in the Transition Width associated with that pattern feature(regardless of Feature Width), as compared with a similarly-constructedsubstrate with pile elements comprised primarily or exclusively of nylon6,6. Accordingly, the corresponding equations for wool (see FIGS. 101and 102, respectively) are:(wool) TW _(1 element, min, any direction)(cm)=0.238·[Measured PileHeight (cm)]+0.062

The corresponding line for the Directionally Averaged Minimum 1 ElementTransition Width, FIG. 102, is given by(wool) TW _(1 element, directionally averaged min)(cm)=0.223·[MeasuredPile Height (cm)]+0.091

Another aspect that defines the ability to generate fine details in aprinted pattern is Feature Width, or its equivalent, effective gauge.Minimum Feature Width (or, equivalently, maximum effective print gauge)is a measure of the smallest area of the substrate to which a specificcolor can be practically and reliably assigned. It is a function of avariety of factors (substrate construction, nature of dye, printdirection, etc.), but is assumed to be substantially constrained by thenominal gauge of the patterning device (which is merely a measure of thesmallest area of the substrate to which a specific color can betheoretically assigned, given the physical layout of the patterningdevice). It will be remembered that the nominal gauge of the PREF andRECIRC patterning systems is 20 gauge (20 drops or pixels/inch), whilethe DOD system is nominally a 16 gauge print system (16 drops orpixels/inch).

This minimum width for a 1 pixel printed element (i.e., the effectivegauge) is measured as described earlier by a 1 Element Feature Width.Before discussing the data in the 1 Element Feature Width charts, someclarifications are necessary. It is generally the case that a patternelement width can be reduced by the encroachment of dye from neighboringpixels that tends to hide the presence of that pattern element. Thecharts show that some of the finest details that are rendered on thesubstrate are the non-dominant color features. Such ability to generatea fine detail using a color that is overwhelmed by dye from neighboringpixels (that themselves were not rendered with a fine detail since theyreadily migrated out of their pixel area) is not a reliable indicationof the capabilities of the printer or patterning system. Therefore, thefollowing discussion relates only to the dominant dye features on thenon-dominant (or at least less dominant) background. By being able tocontrol more effectively the dyes that tend to migrate readily out oftheir respective pixel areas, the more capable the printer is ofgenerally rendering for all colors a fine detail.

The Wet Pickup Averaged 1 Element Feature Width data for Substrate A,FIG. 103, show many of the same characteristics that were mentioned inthe discussion of the Transition Width data for this substrate.

For example, as a consequence of the basic design of the RECIRC and DODpatterning devices, there is a readily discernable directional effect oranisotropy in rendering small features, due to the inherent design ofthe patterning devices. For the dominant color features, the PREFprinting system tends to print feature elements that have little, ifany, directional dependence, while both the RECIRC and DOD patterningsystems show a much more consistent trend of directional dependence forall of the dominant color features shown. Specifically, the RECIRCsystem consistently renders a narrower Feature Width for featuresprinted in the horizontal (hor) direction, while the DOD systemconsistently renders a narrower Feature Width for features printed inthe vertical (ver) direction, for the same reasons noted in thediscussion on the anisotropy of the Transition Width data. Such resultsare consistent with the expectations of those skilled in the art ofusing these respective patterning systems. As noted for the TransitionWidth data, this Feature Width printing anisotropy is modified to agreater or lesser degree by substrate effects.

In most cases, the 1 Element Wet Pickup Averaged Dominant Color FeatureWidth for PREF-system printing, shown in FIGS. 103-122, is smaller thanthat obtained in either orthogonal direction for RECIRC or DOD for anygiven color combination. There are instances where a good direction forthe DOD and RECIRC data may be comparable to the PREF data, but, formost dominant colors on all substrates, the PREF printing processproduces a narrower 1 Element Dominant Color Feature Width. This overallability to produce narrower 1 element features can be seen in thedirectionally averaged (Wet Pickup Averaged, as well as Minimum) 1element Feature Width charts, where, almost universally, the PREFpatterning system produced directionally averaged dominant colorfeatures that were narrower than the corresponding directionallyaveraged DOD or RECIRC feature. Again, the numeric value for the 1element dominant color Feature Width varies depending on which dominantcolor is being rendered. However, as noted for the Transition Widthdata, the 1 element Feature Width data generated by the PREF patterningsystem (1) appears to be more tightly clustered, resulting in a moregeneral ability to render fine details of any color, and (2) reflectsand ability to generate smaller dominant color details than either theRECIRC or DOD printing system for some colors.

FIG. 123 shows the Color Averaged (and Directionally Averaged) 1 ElementFeature Width data as a function of wet pickup for Substrates A throughD, printed by the PREF patterning system. The wet pickup range for thesedata is larger than the range specified in the manufacturing wet pickupranges listed in Table 1 for each of the four nylon 6,6 substrates.There are, therefore, data for higher and lower wet pickups than aretypically specified for the respective substrates. Additionally, the 1Element Feature Width data is color-averaged over all dominant colorsprinted on the same substrate with a similar wet pickup. The raw datafor each color fall in the center of the data ranges seen for allcolors, so these data may be thought of as an average expectation forthe 1 Element Feature Width. Some important observations to be made fromFIG. 123 are discussed below.

Since the color and direction averaged 1 Element Feature Width data foreach nylon 6,6 substrate is included on the chart and the data appear tofall on a continuous curve, it is reasonable to infer that the FeatureWidth is, in general, a function of the wet pickup required to dye thenylon 6,6 substrate to obtain an adequate fractional penetration. Thisimplies that when substantial wet pickup is required to get highpenetration of colors on the substrate, as, for example, a carpetingproduct with long tufts, the Feature Width will be larger than for aproduct for which substantial penetration can be achieved with a lowerwet pickup.

FIG. 123 shows a least square regression fit of a power law equation tothe color and direction averaged 1 element Feature Width data, plottedagainst wet pickup. The power law exponent of the fit is approximately⅓. This is significant because it corroborates a model that is veryuseful in characterizing the PREF print system. If it is assumed that,subsequent to being dispensed onto a substrate surface, the dye is ableto bead up and form a sphere on the surface that is then absorbed intact(i.e., wholly within a circular “footprint” having a diameter equal tothat of the sphere, without spreading outwardly), then the Feature Widththat one would expect for patterning with such a sphere in each pixelarea would be equivalent to the diameter of the corresponding circularfootprint. Such a model is reasonable as the high viscosity of the dyeused in the PREF patterning system, coupled with the chemistry that isapplied to the substrate surfaces, would tend to slow the drop's wickinginto the substrate and allow it to form a bead on the surface beforebeing absorbed into the substrate. Using such a model, the Feature Widthwould be described by the diameter of a sphere with a volume determinedby the wet pickup applied to the substrate and the dye density, which isapproximately 1 g/cm³ for the PREF patterning system. Assuming a 20gauge patterning system, 400 drops would be dispensed into a square inchof substrate and the wet pickup in that square inch would be dividedequally into the 400 drops. The resulting equation that relates 1Element Feature Width to wet pickup, given that the geometric volume ofa sphere is (4/3)πr³, where r is the radius of the sphere (=diameter ofsphere/2), is:FW _(1 element)(cm)=2·((3/248·π)·Wet Pickup(g/cm²))^(1/3)

The power law exponent of ⅓ from the fit to the PREF Color-and-DirectionAveraged 1 Element Feature Width data indicates that the spherical dropmodel for Feature Width may be a good way to characterize the PREFpatterning system's ability to print fine features on a substrate, andparticularly nylon 6,6.

FIG. 124 shows a comparison of the Color and Direction Averaged 1Element Feature Width data for the nylon 6,6 substrates for PREF,RECIRC, and the DOD printing systems. In addition, the chart shows theun-scaled prediction for 1 Element Feature Width from the spherical dropmodel calculated for the corresponding wet pickup. It is significant tonote that (1) the PREF 1 Element Color and Direction Averaged FeatureWidth is nearly equal to the prediction of the spherical drop model,indicating that the PREF system more closely approximates that model,and (2) the RECIRC and DOD data both deviate more from the predictionsof this simple model. This same general trend for the PREF 1 ElementFeature Width is seen, but to a somewhat lesser extent, for Substrate E(see FIG. 125). The lessening of this effect is believed to be due to anincrease in the tendency for dye to remain on the surface of SubstrateE, thereby enhancing the opportunity for the dye to migrate laterallyrather than vertically.

The details of the dye are also believed to affect the Feature Width.FIG. 126 shows the Direction Averaged 1 Element Feature Width data forthe five dominant color features, as printed on Substrates A-D against abeige background. Power curve fits to the data support the followingconclusions. In general, 1 element Feature Width tends to increasemonotonically with the concentration of individual dyestuffs in theprinted dye. Therefore, for the specific dyes that were printed withPREF in the Examples, the order of decreasing Feature Width is: red,black, yellow, green, and brown.

FIG. 127 shows the Directionally Averaged 1 element Feature Widthplotted against Wet Pickup for all the dominant color features for thethree print technologies for the nylon 6,6 substrates (Substrates Athrough D). In addition, the spherical drop model prediction for the 1Element Feature Width is plotted as a solid line on the chart. When allof the color data is plotted, it is noted that some of the PREFDirectionally Averaged 1 Element Feature Widths are smaller than thespherical drop model prediction—an effect believed to be due to certainchanneling effects induced by neighboring dye drops or small scalesubstrate construction features. It is interesting to note that, asidefrom one exception (found at a relatively high wet pickup value), theDirectionally Averaged 1 Element Feature Width data falling below thesolid line (i.e., with values smaller than those predicted by thespherical drop model) are all PREF data. Actually, a great deal of theDirectionally Averaged 1 Element Feature Width data beneath the linerepresenting the spherical drop model prediction are for the brown colorfeature. This is significant because, as mentioned earlier, thebrown/beige pairing is believed by those skilled in the art to representthe majority of color pairings actually used to print textilesubstrates.

The single non-PREF data point that falls below the line was checked andfound to have a relatively large 1 Element Transition Width. If theadditional requirement is made that the data under the curve also needto have a 1 element Transition Width less than, say, 4.5 mm, then thespherical drop model provides a cut off that represents the effectivegauge or Feature Width that reliably distinguishes the PREF's systempatterned products. This requirement that a printed fine element featurehave both a small Feature Width and a small Transition Width will laterbe shown to demonstrate, in decisive fashion, the advantage of the PREFpatterning system over the RECIRC and DOD print systems.

For an arbitrary substrate, one can calculate the Feature Width thatwould separate PREF printing from its competitors by knowing the wetpickup that is required to achieve adequate penetration along the lengthof the tuft extending above the backing (e.g., at least 50% for nylon6,6 substrates and at least 40% for wool substrates) on that specificbase, and translating that wet pickup, using the spherical drop modelequation for the 1 Element Feature Width as a function of wet pickup, toa Feature Width that can uniquely characterize a PREF-patterned product.To facilitate this process, FIG. 129 shows, for a number of substratesthat are printed for commercially available floor coverings, theprinted-pile face weight and the required wet pickup of dye that wouldbe necessary to achieve adequate penetration, as defined above. Fromthis table and the spherical drop model, one can calculate the 1 ElementFeature Width that separates the PREF patterning system from RECIRC andDOD for any given nylon 6,6 substrate and corresponding wet pickup. Oneskilled in the art will recognize that, since the Directionally Averaged1 Element Feature Width increases with wet pickup, it can also beexpected to increase with pile height. This is because increased pileheight requires additional wet pickup so that the pile can be dyed withadequate penetration.

FIG. 130 shows Maximum Gauge as determined by calculating the reciprocalof the Directionally Averaged Minimum 1 Element Feature Width obtainedfrom the previously discussed bar charts for each of the fivesubstrates. As before, the spherical drop model provides a dividing linedistinguishing the ability of the PREF patterning system from the RECIRCand DOD patterning systems in producing small 1 Element Feature Widthsand thus relatively high effective print gauge. The single DOD datapoint that appears above the spherical drop prediction line is again dueto a feature that has a relatively large Transition Width, and thuswould not be considered a component of a high definition pattern. FIG.131 shows the maximum wet pickup averaged print gauge for each substrateand patterning technology, calculated from the reciprocal of the minimumvalues of the Directionally and Wet Pickup Averaged 1 Element FeatureWidths taken from the previously discussed bar charts. At the averagewet pickup for the given bases, the PREF patterning system is clearlycapable of producing a higher gauge (or smaller 1 Element FeatureWidths) than either the DOD or RECIRC patterning systems. Thus, use ofthe spherical drop model here provides a clear dividing line between theability of PREF to print small 1 Element Feature Widths and the abilityof DOD and RECIRC patterning systems to print corresponding features.

The bar charts clearly indicate that the PREF system is able to printsmaller 1 Element Feature Widths for some dominant colors than ispossible for either the DOD or the RECIRC patterning systems. Tocharacterize this property, FIGS. 132-133 show, for any dominant coloron a given substrate for each patterning system, the smallest value ofthe Minimum 1 Element Feature Width (in either direction ordirectionally averaged) that was measured, plotted against the AverageWet Pickup for that substrate. It is clear that the DirectionallyAveraged Minimum 1 Element Feature Widths obtained for the PREFpatterning system are smaller than for either DOD or RECIRC systems.Looking at these plots generally, a line can be drawn that separates thesmallest 1 Element Feature Widths that the DOD and RECIRC technologiescan print from the corresponding 1 Element Feature Widths that the PREFprinting system can generate. The equation for this separating lineshown in FIG. 132 for the Minimum 1 Element Feature Width in anydirection versus average substrate wet pickup is given below.(nylon 6,6) FW _(1 element, min, any direction)(cm)=0.16·[AverageSubstrate Wet Pickup(g/cm²)]+0.12

The corresponding line for the directionally averaged minimum 1 elementFeature Width, FIG. 133, is given by(nylon 6,6) FW_(1 element, min, directionally averaged)(cm)=0.081·[Average SubstrateWet Pickup (g/cm²)]+0.188

Looking at the data generated from Substrate E (i.e., the 80% wool/20%nylon 6,6 pile), the degree of dye penetration was typically less thanthe corresponding dye penetration observed in Substrates A through D(100% nylon 6,6 pile). As explained earlier, because of this resistanceto penetration observed with pile comprised of wool, there is a tendencyfor the dye to remain at or near the surface of the pile, therebyenhancing the opportunity for the dye to migrate or bleed laterally andcausing an increase in the Feature Width associated with that patternfeature, as compared with a similarly-constructed substrate with pileelements comprised primarily or exclusively of nylon 6,6 (see FIG. 132).(wool) FW _(1 element, min, any direction)(cm)=0.089·[Average SubstrateWet Pickup(g/cm²)]+0.12

The corresponding line for the directionally averaged minimum 1 elementFeature Width, FIG. 133, is given by(wool) FW _(1 element, min, directionally averaged)(cm)=0.045·[AverageSubstrate Wet Pickup (g/cm²)]+0.188

Up to this point in the data discussion, the patterning performance ofthe PREF patterning system has been compared with the DOD and RECIRCsystems by using only a single parameter (i.e., Transition Width orFeature Width). However, the real advantage of the PREF patterningsystem is the ability to provide superior properties across multiplepatterning parameters or figures of merit. Desirable attributes for apatterned textile substrate are not only the presence of sharp edges onlarge contiguous pattern areas (i.e., Transition Widths, describedpreviously), but also the presence in the patterned area of fine detailswith substantial color contrast with their neighboring pattern areas(i.e., Minimum Feature Widths). To obtain fine printed details alongwith substantial contrast of the fine element with its neighboringpattern areas, both a small Feature Width and a small Transition Widthare required. To the extent that some manufacturers may choose not toprint 1 element features in their products (for example, to assure thatthe desired feature appears in the pattern, in spite of blocked dyejets, etc.), 2 element feature properties will be introduced in thefollowing graphs and discussion. It will be demonstrated that the PREFpatterning system is capable of providing the smallest Transition Widthsand Feature Widths for both the 1 element and 2 element patternfeatures, when compared with the RECIRC and DOD systems. A personskilled in the art will recognize that a 1 element and 2 element detailcan be generally distinguished from each other in that a 2 elementdetail will have a width generally larger than twice the nominal printgauge of the print machine.

The two-dimensional charts that compare Feature Width and TransitionWidth for each of the printing technologies on Substrates A through Eare FIGS. 134-153. These charts include all wet pickup data—the datahave not been culled to represent the typical wet pickup ranges that areprinted for each substrate. Because it includes all wet pickup data, thecharts will tend to represent the ability of each of the printtechnologies to get finer, sharper print details by lowering the wetpickup. The charts will show, for each of the selected substrates insequence, first the 1 Element Transition Width plotted against thecorresponding 1 Element Feature Width for all dominant colors features(raw data shown for both the horizontal and vertical print directions),and second the Directionally Averaged 1 Element Transition Width dataplotted versus the Directionally Averaged 1 Element Feature Width data.Note that these data do NOT include wet pickup averaging or findingminimum values. It is the raw data and therefore tends to show how themajority of PREF, RECIRC and DOD data are clustered in this parameterspace. The same order and sequence of charts will be shown for the 2element feature data, below.

Inspection of FIGS. 134-153 shows a general trend. The PREF system 1element and 2 element features tend to be clustered toward the lowTransition Width and low Feature Width portion of the charts for both 1element and 2 element features. The DOD and RECIRC system Feature Widthsand Transition Width pairs tend to be more widely scattered,demonstrating the inherent difficulty of obtaining both good FeatureWidth and Transition Width for these print technologies. The clusteringof the Feature Width and Transition Width data pairs for the PREFpatterning system at low values for all dominant colors indicates thatthe PREF system is more capable of printing fine details withsubstantial contrast with neighboring pattern elements for a broad classof colors. Comparing the 1 Element and 2 Element Directionally AveragedTransition Width and corresponding Directionally Averaged Feature Widthdata demonstrates the clustering of the PREF system at small TransitionWidth and Feature Width values that the other print systems are not ableto attain.

In most cases the data points that represent the smallest TransitionWidth and Feature Width are for the brown/beige pairing of colors. Asmentioned previously, one skilled in the art recognizes that this colorpair is a good surrogate for the majority of colors used to patternprint textile substrates. The directionally averaged data clearlydemonstrates a positive difference between the PREF printing technologyand the DOD and RECIRC systems because the PREF data are moredirectionally uniform, indicating high definition patterning performancein any direction. In contrast the DOD and RECIRC systems both have agood and a bad direction, so the directional averages fall in adifferent region of the Feature Width versus Transition Width chart,effectively distinguishing the PREF print system.

An additional and noteworthy feature of the PREF patterning system isthat it is capable of generating sharply defined, high definitionpattern details on a product while also providing for substantialpenetration of the dyes into the substrate pile. As discussed above,achieving pattern features having high definition is generally easierwhere reduced quantities of dye are used (thereby minimizing lateral dyemigration on the substrate surface). However, by so doing, dyepenetration is usually adversely affected. For this reason, penetrationmeasurements were carried out to determine the extent of penetrationthat can be obtained in 1 element and 2 element pattern details whilemaintaining small Feature Widths and Transition Widths. The penetrationmeasurements were carried out with a very specific definition ofpenetration. The penetration was measured on the side profile of thesubstrate pile so that calipers could be used to specifically measurethe distance from the top of the substrate pile surface down to thepoint where the dyed portion ceased to be uniform in any way. As anexample, as the dye penetrates the pile, at some point the color mayfeather out due to the dye wicking uncontrollably into disparatecapillaries, or the hue may change substantially. Accordingly, bymeasuring penetration in this way, the furthest extent of dyepenetration may not be relevant; rather, the key measurement involvesthe point at which the dye has traveled along the yarn and dyed it in avisually uniform manner. A number of measurements were made to generatea suitable average value for the penetration of the dye of the featurein question, thereby accommodating inevitable variations due tosubstrate imperfections or irregularities.

In addition, measurements were made of the pile height for eachsubstrate (i.e., length of exposed tuft or yarn forming the pile, asmeasured from the proximal end of the tuft). It should be noted that themanufacturing specifications associated with Substrates A through E inTable 1 gives the full length of the pile element, including thatportion of the pile element that is encapsulated with adhesives, otherchemicals, or out of view beneath the textile backing layers thatsupport the carpet face—a much greater length for the pile height thanwas used to calculate fractional penetration (i.e., the ratio of theextent of uniform dye penetration to the full measured pile height orlength extending above the backing).

FIGS. 154-167 show the penetration of each of the colors plotted versuswet pickup for each substrate and each patterning system. It isgenerally expected that the penetration will increase monotonically withwet pickup. Due to the complexity of how the dye wicks into thesubstrate and the definition used herein for determining penetration, alinear increase in penetration with increasing wet pickup was generallynot found, though it was found to be generally monotonically increasing.

The samples patterned with the PREF system demonstrate the clearesttrends. Generally, the colors with heavier concentrations of dyestuffs,such as black, red, and yellow, tend to have a high penetration fromhigher wet pickup, occasionally even with very low wet pickup. Colorsthat have lower dyestuff concentrations, such as brown and green, tendto have a reduced penetration at lower wet pickups. This result is notunexpected: as the dyes find sites at which to fix, dye molecules areremoved from the downwardly wicking fluid so that, near the bottom ofthe pile tuft, there is insufficient dye to effectively dye thelowermost portions of the pile tuft. This trend is very clearly seen inthe longer pile height substrates such as Substrates C through E. Forthose substrates, the differences between more and less highlyconcentrated dyes are enhanced due to the long pile. Similar results areseen for the penetration data for substrates patterned with the RECIRCand DOD patterning systems.

As has been discussed above, the PREF patterning system is capable ofproviding, simultaneously, small Feature Widths and small TransitionWidths, as compared with competing patterning systems. The followingdiscussion will look at how the PREF system compares with the RECIRC andDOD print systems when fractional penetration is also considered. As apart of this discussion, FIGS. 168-247 will be used, which aretwo-dimensional renditions of three-dimensional graphs. The figures showFeature Width data along with the corresponding Transition Width dataand the corresponding penetration data (or alternatively wet pickupdata). All of the wet pickups that were sampled for all dominant colorfeatures are included in these Figures—they are not limited to apre-selected wet pickup range. These Figures are arranged in thefollowing way: the first type of chart shows raw Transition Width andFeature Width data for both horizontal and vertical direction featuresalong with fractional penetration (and alternatively wet pickup), firstfor 1 Element Dominant Color features, then for 2 Element Dominant Colorfeatures. The second type of chart shows Directionally AveragedTransition Width and Directionally Averaged Feature Width data for bothhorizontal and vertical direction features along with fractionalpenetration (and alternatively wet pickup), first for 1 Element DominantColor features, then for 2 Element Dominant Color features. Inconnection with the instant discussions, the shorthand “average” shallbe used to designate that the data have been averaged along twoorthogonal directions for these charts. The third type of chart is amagnification of a corresponding three-dimensional graph, and serves toisolate a region of the graph corresponding to low Feature Width, lowTransition Width, and high fractional penetration (or correspondingrange of wet pickup values). These isolation graphs show that the PREFpatterning system is capable of producing products with a combination ofTransition Width, Feature Width, and fractional penetration for manycolors that previously has been unobtainable in substrate-dyed products,and particularly unattainable through the use of a metered jetpatterning system.

In general, the dominant color pattern elements printed by the PREFpatterning system have Transition Widths and Feature Widths that areclustered at low values, along with those fractional penetration valuesthat have been selected to define products that are considered ofcommercially acceptable quality (i.e., at least 0.5 for nylon 6,6substrates and at least 0.4 for wool substrates). This is true for allsubstrates, to a greater or lesser extent, indicating that, on a broadvariety of floor covering substrates, the PREF system can print finer,sharper details, while obtaining good fractional penetration, ascompared with the DOD and RECIRC print systems. This statement is truefor both the 1 element and 2 element features. This fact is made evenclearer by the fact that the isolation charts show regions in thethree-dimensional graph that represent desirable print features (e.g.,fine details with sharp edges and good penetration) that only the PREFpatterning system can attain.

As shown graphically in the isolation graphs discussed above, there aredefinite values for the Transition Width and Feature Width parameters(along with fractional penetration or wet pickup) that define aperformance parameter space attainable only with the PREF patterningsystem. The boundaries of this space vary with the substrate and thenature of the pattern feature (i.e., whether the specific patternfeature is a 1 element or 2 element dominant color feature).

For Substrate A, direction-specific (two orthogonal directions) FeatureWidth, Transition Width and fractional penetration (and equivalent WetPickup range) values associated with a 1 element pattern area that areattainable only with the PREF patterning system (see FIG. 169) are:(Substrate A) FW_(1element)<0.2 cm, TW_(1element)<0.2 cm, FractionalPenetration≧0.5

Or, equivalently, FIG. 173,(Substrate A) FW_(1element)<0.2 cm, TW_(1element)<0.2 cm, Wet PickupRange: 0.06-0.25 g/cm².

Directionally averaged values corresponding to the above boundaries forSubstrate A (see FIG. 171) are:(Substrate A) FW_(1element, directionally averaged)<0.22 cm,TW_(1element, directionally averaged)<0.2 cm, Fractional Penetration≧0.5

Or, equivalently, FIG. 175,(Substrate A) FW_(1element, directionally averaged)<0.22 cm,TW_(1element, directionally averaged)<0.2 cm, Wet Pickup Range:0.06-0.25 g/cm².

For Substrate A, direction-specific (two orthogonal directions) FeatureWidth, Transition Width and fractional penetration (and equivalent WetPickup range) values associated with a 2 element pattern area that areattainable only with the PREF patterning system (see FIG. 209) are:(Substrate A) FW_(2element)<0.34 cm, TW_(2element)<0.175 cm, FractionalPenetration≧0.5

Or, equivalently, FIG. 213,(Substrate A) FW_(2element)<0.34 cm, TW_(2element)<0.175 cm, Wet PickupRange: 0.06-0.25 g/cm².

Directionally averaged values corresponding to the above boundaries forSubstrate A (see FIG. 211) are:(Substrate A) FW2 element, directionally averaged<0.34,TW_(2element, directionally averaged)<0.18, Fractional Penetration≧0.5

Or, equivalently, FIG. 215,(Substrate A) FW2 element, directionally averaged<0.34,TW_(2element, directionally averaged)<0.18, Wet Pickup Range: 0.06-0.25g/cm².

For Substrate B, direction-specific (two orthogonal directions) FeatureWidth, Transition Width and fractional penetration (and equivalent WetPickup range) values associated with a 1 element pattern area that areattainable only with the PREF patterning system (see FIG. 177) are:(Substrate B) FW_(1element)<0.25 cm, TW_(1element)<0.21 cm, FractionalPenetration≧0.5

Or, equivalently, FIG. 181,(Substrate B) FW_(1element)<0.25 cm, TW_(1element)<0.21 cm, Wet PickupRange: 0.06-0.25 g/cm².

Directionally averaged values corresponding to the above boundaries forSubstrate B (see FIG. 179) are:(Substrate B) FW_(1element, directionally averaged)<0.27 cm,TW_(1element, directionally averaged)<0.215 cm, FractionalPenetration≧0.5

Or, equivalently, FIG. 183,(Substrate B) FW_(1element, directionally averaged)<0.27 cm,TW_(1element, directionally averaged)<0.215 cm, Wet Pickup Range:0.06-0.25 g/cm².

For Substrate B, direction-specific (two orthogonal directions) FeatureWidth, Transition Width and fractional penetration (and equivalent WetPickup range) values associated with a 2 element pattern area that areattainable only with the PREF patterning system (see FIG. 217) are:(Substrate B) FW_(2element)<0.35 cm, TW_(2element)<0.21 cm, FractionalPenetration≧0.5

Or, equivalently, FIG. 221,(Substrate B) FW_(2element)<0.35 cm, TW_(2element)<0.2 cm, Wet PickupRange: 0.06-0.25 g/cm².

Directionally averaged values corresponding to the above boundaries forSubstrate B (see FIG. 219) are:(Substrate B) FW_(2element, directionally averaged)<0.36,TW_(2element, directionally averaged)<0.24, Fractional Penetration≧0.5

Or, equivalently, FIG. 223,(Substrate B) FW_(2element, directionally averaged)<0.36,TW_(2element, directionally averaged)<0.24, Wet Pickup Range: 0.06-0.25g/cm².

For Substrate C, direction-specific (two orthogonal directions) FeatureWidth, Transition Width and fractional penetration (and equivalent WetPickup range) values associated with a 1 element pattern area that areattainable only with the PREF patterning system (see FIG. 185) are:(Substrate C) FW_(1element)<0.25 cm, TW_(1element)<0.245 cm, FractionalPenetration≧0.5

Or, equivalently, FIG. 189,(Substrate C) FW_(1element)<0.25 cm, TW_(1element)<0.245 cm, Wet PickupRange: 0.16-0.55 g/cm².

Directionally averaged values corresponding to the above boundaries forSubstrate C (see FIG. 187) are:(Substrate C) FW_(1element, directionally averaged)<0.275 cm,TW_(1element, directionally averaged)<0.25 cm, FractionalPenetration≧0.5

Or, equivalently, FIG. 191,(Substrate C) FW_(1element, directionally averaged)<0.275 cm,TW_(1element, directionally averaged)<0.265 cm, Wet Pickup Range:0.16-0.55 g/cm².

For Substrate C, direction-specific (two orthogonal directions) FeatureWidth, Transition Width and fractional penetration (and equivalent WetPickup range) values associated with a 2 element pattern area that areattainable only with the PREF patterning system (see FIG. 225) are:(Substrate C) FW_(2element)<0.4 cm, TW_(2element)<0.235 cm, FractionalPenetration≧0.5

Or, equivalently, FIG. 229,(Substrate C) FW_(2element)<0.35 cm, TW_(2element)<0.235 cm, Wet PickupRange: 0.16-0.55 g/cm².

Directionally averaged values corresponding to the above boundaries forSubstrate C (see FIG. 227) are:(Substrate C) FW_(2element, directionally averaged)<0.4,TW_(2element, directionally averaged)<0.26, Fractional Penetration≧0.5

Or, equivalently, FIG. 231,(Substrate C) FW_(2element, directionally averaged)<0.4,TW_(2element, directionally averaged)<0.26, Wet Pickup Range: 0.16-0.55g/cm².

For Substrate D, direction-specific (two orthogonal directions) FeatureWidth, Transition Width and fractional penetration (and equivalent WetPickup range) values associated with a 1 element pattern area that areattainable only with the PREF patterning system (see FIG. 193) are:(Substrate D) FW_(1element)<0.3 cm, TW_(1element)<0.27 cm, FractionalPenetration≧0.5

Or, equivalently, FIG. 197,(Substrate D) FW_(1element)<0.3 cm, TW_(1element)<0.27 cm, Wet PickupRange: 0.16-0.55 g/cm².

Directionally averaged values corresponding to the above boundaries forSubstrate D (see FIG. 195) are:(Substrate D) FW_(1element, directionally averaged)<0.3 cm,TW_(1element, directionally averaged)<0.35 cm, FractionalPenetration≧0.5

Or, equivalently, FIG. 199,(Substrate D) FW_(1element, directionally averaged)<0.3 cm,TW_(1element, directionally averaged)<0.35 cm, Wet Pickup Range:0.16-0.55 g/cm².

For Substrate D, direction-specific (two orthogonal directions) FeatureWidth, Transition Width and fractional penetration (and equivalent WetPickup range) values associated with a 1 element pattern area that areattainable only with the PREF patterning system (see FIG. 233) are:(Substrate D) FW_(2element)<0.46 cm, TW_(2element)<0.26 cm, FractionalPenetration≧0.5

Or, equivalently, FIG. 237,(Substrate D) FW_(2element)<0.4 cm, TW_(2element)<0.26 cm, Wet PickupRange: 0.16-0.55 g/cm².

Directionally averaged values corresponding to the above boundaries forSubstrate D (see FIG. 235) are:(Substrate D) FW_(2element, directionally averaged)<0.48,TW_(2element, directionally averaged)<0.33, Fractional Penetration≧0.5

Or equivalently, FIG. 239,(Substrate D) FW_(2element, directionally averaged)<0.45,TW_(2element, directionally averaged)<0.305, Wet Pickup Range: 0.16-0.55g/cm².

For Substrate E, direction-specific (two orthogonal directions) FeatureWidth, Transition Width and fractional penetration (and equivalent WetPickup range) values associated with a 1 element pattern area that areattainable only with the PREF patterning system (see FIG. 201) are:(Substrate E) FW_(1 element)<0.3 cm, TW _(1 element)<0.31 cm, FractionalPenetration≧0.4

Or equivalently, as shown in FIG. 205,(Substrate E) FW_(1 element)<0.3 cm, TW _(1 element)<0.31 cm, Wet PickupRange: 0.2-0.4 g/cm².

Directionally averaged values corresponding to the above boundaries forSubstrate E (see FIG. 203) are:(Substrate E) FW_(1 element, directionally averaged)<0.4 cm,TW_(1 element, directionally averaged)<0.33 cm, FractionalPenetration≧0.4

Or equivalently, as shown in FIG. 207,(Substrate E) FW_(1 element, directionally averaged)<0.3 cm, TW_(1 element, directionally averaged)<0.4 cm, Wet Pickup Range: 0.2-0.6g/cm².

For Substrate E, direction-specific (two orthogonal directions) FeatureWidth, Transition Width and fractional penetration (and equivalent WetPickup range) values associated with a 2 element pattern area that areattainable only with the PREF patterning system (see FIG. 241) are:(Substrate E) FW_(2 element)<0.4 cm, TW_(2 element)<0.3 cm, FractionalPenetration≧0.4

Or equivalently, as shown in FIG. 245,(Substrate E) FW_(2 element)<0.4 cm, TW_(2 element)<0.3 cm, Wet PickupRange: 0.04-0.4 g/cm².

Directionally averaged values corresponding to the above boundaries forSubstrate E (see FIG. 243) are:(Substrate E) FW_(2 element, directionally averaged)<0.4,TW_(2 element, directionally averaged)<0.29, Fractional Penetration≧0.4

Or equivalently, as shown in FIG. 247,(Substrate E) FW_(2 element, directionally averaged)<0.4,TW_(2 element, directionally averaged)<0.29, Wet Pickup Range: 0.04-0.4g/cm².

For each of the given substrates and pattern areas, a boundary value hasbeen identified for both Transition Width and Feature Width in thecorresponding isolation chart below which the print variables(Transition Width, Feature Width, and fractional penetration or wetpickup range) for the dominant color feature can only be attained by thePREF printing system. These boundaries therefore serve to distinguishPREF printed products from those printed by other systems in thatprevious products would not contain fine sharp dominant color patternareas with the same 1 element or 2 element Transition Width and FeatureWidth parameters. To understand how the range of Transition Width andFeature Width values attained only by PREF varied with substrate, graphsplotting the boundary values for the PREF only cube (the isolationcharts extreme boundaries) versus pile height were prepared. FIGS.248-255 show the plots of these boundary values for the 1 and 2 elementTransition Width and Feature Widths versus pile height both for the dataregardless of direction and the directionally averaged data. It isapparent from the data that both the Transition Width and Feature Widthincrease monotonically with the pile height of the substrate.

In an effort to numerically quantify this relationship, a line thatconnected or fell below each point was applied to each data graphindividually. They allow us to quantify for each case how the PREF cubeboundaries varied with pile height. For the 1 element data for nylon 6,6that was not directionally averaged, FIGS. 248-249, the results areFW _(boundary, 1 element)(cm)=0.14·(Pile Height (cm))+0.15TW_(boundary, 1 element)(cm)=0.11·(Pile Height (cm))+0.16 FractionalPenetration≧0.5

The above equations serve, in combination, to define the upperboundaries of a three-dimensional space in which only the PREFpatterning system can print pattern areas in any direction with a 1Element Transition Width, a 1 Element Feature Width, and an attendantfractional penetration of greater than 0.5 (nylon 6,6 substrates).Stated a different way, for a dominant color 1 element pattern areaprinted (especially printed using metered jet patterning technology) inany direction on a predominantly nylon 6,6 substrate with a given pileheight and a fractional penetration that is at least 0.5, the 1 elementFeature Width and 1 Element Transition Width, measured in accordancewith the teachings herein, will have values less than the valuesspecified from the equations above only for such substrates printed withthe PREF printing system.

The non-directionally averaged 2 element data (FIGS. 250-251) yields thefollowing equations:FW _(boundary, 2 element)(cm)=0.169·(Pile Height (cm))+0.28TW _(boundary, 2 element)(cm)=0.129·(Pile Height (cm))+0.129 FractionalPenetration≧0.5

For the same 1 element data that was directionally averaged, FIGS. 252and 253, the results are:FW _(boundary, 1 element, directionally averaged)(cm)=0.121·(Pile Height(cm))+0.177TW _(boundary, 1 element, directionally averaged)(cm)=0.183·(Pile Height(cm))+0.135 Fractional Penetration≧0.5

For a dominant color 2 element pattern area printed (especially printedusing metered jet patterning technology) in any direction on apredominantly nylon 6,6 substrate with a given pile height and afractional penetration that is at least 0.5, the 2 element Feature Widthand 2 Element Transition Width, measured in accordance with theteachings herein, will have values less than the values specified fromthe equations above only for such substrates printed with the PREFprinting system.

Again, for a specified dominant color, a 1 element pattern area can beidentified that has been printed (in particular metered-jet printed) inany two orthogonal directions on a substrate with a given pile height,the measured said two orthogonal 1 element pattern area 1 elementFeature Width and 1 element Transition Width, measured in accordancewith the teachings herein and subsequently directionally averaged, willhave values less than the values specified from the equations above,calculated at said pile height for the given substrate, in conjunctionwith a fractional penetration greater than 0.5 only for substratesprinted with the PREF printing system.

For the 2 element data that was directionally averaged, FIG. 254-255,the results areFW _(boundary, 2 element, directionally averaged)(cm)=0.167·(Pile Height(cm))+0.28TW _(boundary, 2 element, directionally averaged)(cm)=0.189·(Pile Height(cm))+0.113 Fractional Penetration≧0.5

Again, for a specified dominant color, a 2 element pattern area can beidentified that has been printed (in particular metered-jet printed) inany two orthogonal directions on a nylon 6,6 substrate with a given pileheight, the measured said two orthogonal 2 element pattern area 2element Feature Width and 2 element Transition Width, measured inaccordance with the teachings herein and subsequently directionallyaveraged, will have values less than the values specified from theequations above, calculated at said pile height for the given substrate,in conjunction with a fractional penetration greater than 0.5 only forsubstrates printed with the PREF printing system.

Turning to Substrate E (indicated by a dotted line in the Figures),comprised of predominantly wool pile yarns, it is possible to perform ananalogous analysis resulting in the generation of an equation defining aline that effectively separates the PREF-patterned product from theRECIRC-patterned product for wool substrates as a function of pileheight. For purposes of this analysis, it was assumed that, as pileheight becomes smaller, the difference in patterning performance betweenwool pile yarns and nylon 6,6 pile yarns becomes less, until, at pileheights that approach insignificance, the values for Transition Widthand Feature Width will essentially coincide.

For 1 element data that was not directionally averaged, FIGS. 248-249,the results areFW _(boundary, 1 element)(cm)=0.21·(Pile Height (cm))+0.15TW _(boundary, 1 element)(cm)=0.21·(Pile Height (cm))+0.16 FractionalPenetration>0.4

The above equations serve, in combination, to define the upperboundaries of a three-dimensional space for which only the PREFpatterning system can print pattern areas on a wool substrate in anydirection with a 1 Element Transition Width, a 1 Element Feature Width,and an attendant fractional penetration of at least 0.4. Stated adifferent way, for a dominant color 1 element pattern area printed (inparticular metered-jet printed) in any direction on a wool substratewith a given pile height, the measured said 1 element pattern area 1Element Feature Width and 1 Element Transition Width, measured inaccordance with the teachings herein, will have values less than thevalues specified from the equations above, calculated at said pileheight for the given wool substrate, in conjunction with a fractionalpenetration of at least 0.5 only for substrates printed with the PREFprinting system.

For the 2 element data that was not directionally averaged, FIGS.250-251, the results are:FW _(boundary, 2 element)(cm)=0.169·(Pile Height (cm))+0.28TW _(boundary, 2 element)(cm)=0.255·(Pile Height (cm))+0.129 FractionalPenetration≧0.4

For a specified dominant color 2 element pattern area printed (inparticular metered-jet printed) in any direction on a wool substratewith a given pile height, the measured said 2 element pattern area 2element Feature Width and 2 element Transition Width, measured inaccordance with the teachings herein, will have values less than thevalues specified by the equations above, calculated at said pile heightfor the given wool substrate, in conjunction with a fractionalpenetration of at least 0.4, only for substrates printed with the PREFprinting system.

For the 1 element data that was directionally averaged, FIGS. 252 and253, the results are:FW _(boundary, 1 element, directionally averaged)(cm)=0.315·(Pile Height(cm))+0.177TW _(boundary, 1 element, directionally averaged)(cm)=0.275·(Pile Height(cm))+0.135 Fractional Penetration≧0.4

For a specified dominant color, a 1 element pattern area can beidentified that has been printed (in particular metered-jet printed) inany two orthogonal directions on a wool substrate with a given pileheight, the measured said two orthogonal 1 element pattern area 1element Feature Width and 1 element Transition Width, measured inaccordance with the teachings herein and subsequently directionallyaveraged, will have values less than the values specified by theequations above, calculated at said pile height for the given woolsubstrate, in conjunction with a fractional penetration of at least 0.4only for wool substrates printed with the PREF printing system.

For the 2 element data that was directionally averaged, FIG. 254-255,the results areFW _(boundary, 2 element, directionally averaged)(cm)=0.169·(Pile Height(cm))+0.28TW_(boundary, 2 element, directionally averaged)(cm)=0.25·(Pile Height(cm))+0.113 Fractional Penetration≧0.4

For a specified dominant color, a 2 element pattern area can beidentified that has been printed (in particular metered-jet printed) inany two orthogonal directions on a wool substrate with a given pileheight, the measured said two orthogonal 2 element pattern area 2element Feature Width and 2 element Transition Width, measured inaccordance with the teachings herein and subsequently directionallyaveraged, will have values less than the values specified by theequations above, calculated at said pile height for the given substrate,in conjunction with a fractional penetration of at least 0.4 only forwool substrates printed with the PREF printing system.

In all of the above discussions of PREF-system capabilities, it shouldbe understood that the numerical values selected from the data tocharacterize the PREF-produced products define a performance spacewithin which these products have unique attributes. Numerical valuesfalling within that performance space define products that areconsidered included in the scope of the invention herein disclosed.Accordingly, values of Transition Width or Feature Width (or theircombination) that individually or collectively fall within 90%, 80%,70%, or 60% of the values given above, while maintaining or increasingFractional Penetration, shall also be considered within that performancespace, as shown in the data. With respect to the individual values, andnotwithstanding the foregoing, the data supports practical minimums forTransition Width of about 0.5 mm, and, separately, a minimum FeatureWidth (for dominant color features) equal to the gauge of the patterningequipment used.

1. A patterned textile comprising a substantially planar backingsubstrate to which a plurality of individual pile yarns have beensecured, each of said individual yarns extending upwardly from saidbacking substrate and having a proximal portion where each of said yarnsis attached to said backing substrate and a distal portion, locatedopposite said proximal portion and comprising a pile surface comprisingdistal portions of said pile yarns, said pile surface further comprisingcontiguous pattern areas within which different dyes have beenselectively and respectively dispensed under the control ofelectronically-defined patterning data to said distal portions of saidpile yarns and allowed to migrate from said distal portions of said pileyarns toward the respective proximal portions of said pile yarns, saidcontiguous pattern areas having a coincident border region, said borderregion having a minimum semi-infinite Transition Width less than 1.3 mmand wherein a majority of said pile yarns comprising said border regionshow dye penetration that, for each pile yarn comprising said majority,extends from said distal portion of said yarn to a location at least 40%of the distance along said yarn separating respective distal andproximal portions of said yarn, and wherein, for at least one such pileyarn comprising said majority, dye penetration extends to a locationless than 100% of said distance.
 2. A patterned textile comprising asubstantially planar backing substrate to which a plurality ofindividual pile yarns have been secured, each of said individual yarnsextending upwardly from said backing substrate and having a proximalportion where each of said yarns is attached to said backing substrateand a distal portion, located opposite said proximal portion andcomprising a pile surface comprising distal portions of said pile yarns,said pile surface further comprising contiguous pattern areas withinwhich different dyes have been selectively and respectively dispensedunder the control of electronically-defined patterning data to saiddistal portions of said pile yarns and allowed to migrate from saiddistal portions of said pile yarns toward the respective proximalportions of said pile yarns, said contiguous pattern areas having acoincident border region, said border region having a minimum FeatureWidth that, for a given wet pickup level, is no larger than the diameterof a spherical drop of dye corresponding to such wet pickup levelboundary region having a minimum Feature Width in any direction lessthan 1.5 mm and said Feature Width exhibits an Isotropy Index of lessthan 1.1, and wherein a majority of said pile yarns comprising saidboundary region show dye penetration that, for each pile yarn comprisingsaid majority, extends from said distal portion of said yarn to alocation at least 50% of the distance along said yarn separatingrespective distal and proximal portions of said yarn, and wherein, forat least one such pile yarn comprising said majority, dye penetrationextends to a location less than 100% of said distance, said distancebeing at least about 2 mm. 3-10. (canceled)